wE HAVE NEVER HAD IT SO GOOD

The Pigeon Wing has invited artist-curator Noëmi Lakmaier to curate this exhibition which takes Harold Macmillan’s (UK Prime Minister 1957 – 1963) often misquoted citation ‘most of our people have never had it so good’ as its starting point, and re-contextualises it within the contemporary economic and political framework of the credit crunch and global downturn.   

There is little doubt that the recent financial crisis was being felt in the commercial art market, but what effect is the downturn and it’s after-mass having on individual artists around the world? How might the way art is being produced change because of it? Will reduced sales and the withdrawals of public funding and private sponsorship be detrimental to artists’ livelihoods, or will the downturn create new roles for artists and generate new opportunities?

Local, national and international artists will be invited to respond to the questions, by creating a new piece of work within the constraints of the packaging of a consumer item of their choice. We Have Never Had It So Good will see over 100 these artists’ responses installed in the Pigeon Wing’s warehouse exhibition space.

Downlaod the full brief as a PDF here

If you have any questions regarding this brief or if you require it in an alternative format please contact The Pigeon Wing or Noëmi Lakmaier.