A book of artworks by Cumbrian artists inspired by the historic Coronavirus lockdown of 2020 is to be published to raise money for the county’s NHS and also to support grassroots arts.
The project, called ‘Dreaming through the locking glass’, is aimed at creating a record of what Cumbrian artists did during the lockdown.
The Green Door group of artists and the Eden Valley Artistic Network have already signed up to the project, which is the brainchild of David Felton, founder of the Skelwith Bridge-based publishers Inspired by Lakeland.
Submissions will be selected down to a shortlist for the 144-page book. Each artwork will feature alongside a short description of the piece, the artist’s wider art, and how life has changed for them – personally and creatively – under lockdown.
The summary briefing says the response might be a distant view, a recollection of the days before lockdown, words wrestling between confinement and imaginative freedom, recognition of the value of health workers, a localised view of neighbourhood seen through new eyes – whatever the situation inspires the artist to create.
Profits from sales of the book – which will be available county and nationwide – will be split between local NHS trusts and local artistic groups, including Green Door, Space2Create and Eden Valley Artistic Network (EVAN). It is anticipated that art from this project will also become an exhibition in 2021. The deadline for submitting work is midnight on Friday 29 May 2020.
David said: “The Coronavirus lockdown has been devastating to many Cumbrian artists and small businesses. At the same time, the lockdown has been a chance to slow down, reflect, and engage with a much smaller area around us.
“The county has a record of resilience to events like Foot and Mouth and Storm Desmond. This is an opportunity for artists to respond with original artwork to create a unique historic record.
“‘Dreaming through the locking glass’ is designed to be a creative response to these confined times, and we’re calling on artists of all disciplines throughout Cumbria – painting, illustration, poetry, prose, photography, print-making, textiles, ceramics – to create an original piece of work that captures their personal experience of life during lockdown.”
For further details and submission guidelines, visit: www.inspiredbylakeland.co.uk/post/dreaming-through-the-locking-glass
