In earlier posts I’ve described The Shop and it’s place in both the Nelson community and Think, Question, Print. As a resource it’s been fantastic offering a base during my research trips and a pool of local contacts. In September Elly and the team offered me the opportunity to exhibit as a way of introducing my work to the town. I intended to exhibit the new prints created for ‘Think, Question, Print’ at a later point in the year once they had been developed further so in September I chose to exhibit an existing body of work produced in February for a solo show in Warrington.
Titled ‘What’s Holding Me Back?’ the exhibition comprises a number of hand-printed and hand-made pieces inspired by both my own creative struggles and the drawbacks and difficulties faced by my peers. Making the work felt very cathartic and I often refer back to it if I’m experiencing a creative block or I’m faced with doubts about an idea. It felt like an appropriate body of work to show in a venue where I encountered a number of individuals seeking a space that they could connect with and that reflected their experiences, doubts or thoughts. My aim with the work was to encourage the viewer to look beyond the surface of success or creativity and reflect on the difficulties and setbacks that lead up to that final outcome. I received a lot of positive feedback about the work and the subject matter with visitors identifying with the themes. I hope that the work had a positive effect during it’s time in Nelson at The Shop, I’ve not had the opportunity to gather feedback. My only insight into the impact of the work came shortly after the work was taken down when I was contacted by Andrew Nicholas about featuring an image from the show in the ‘Northern Souls’ zine. I happily agreed and the zine was published and launched by In-Situ in early December.
As mentioned in my previous post my time during October and November became overrun with shifts at my three part time jobs and organising ‘Unwrapped’ print fair. During these two months my contact with Elly and The Shop was also put on hold and I was devastated to find out at the end of November that the landlord had illegally evicted The Shop from their premises in Nelson. I was appalled to hear about this knowing how valuable the space was to so many people in Nelson; The Shop provided more than just a venue for arts or culture but also served as a food bank with donations being made each week that were made available on a ‘pay as you feel’ basis ensuring that even those with nothing were able to visit The Shop and have something to eat or drink or take extra food home with them. Since the eviction In-Situ and the other organisers/contributors to The Shop have continued to provide the services that The Shop offered and I’m sure that their hard work and dedication will soften any negative impact on the community however the eviction is still an infuriating example of how selfish, greedy and out of touch people can be. Projects like The Shop are so important, especially in areas where it is easy to become isolated or where art, culture and community spirit is not so easily accessible.
The closure of The Shop was frustrating for me in terms of ‘Think, Question, Print’ as it meant that my plan to exhibit was no longer possible. I had to rethink my final outcome and adapt to this new situation to ensure that the work could still make some connection with the town and the local residents.
