The Bayeux Tapestry is remade for the digital age and a ‘sandal-wearing lefty’ is immortalised as young creators storm Sheffield
A snapshot of the conversations I have with Londoners about art beyond the boundaries of their city would include such statements as: “I have never thought to visit an exhibition outside London”; “How far is it from London?” and (in a particularly sour exchange about a show in Yorkshire) “That’s a shame”. The Freelands Foundation must have caught wind of this pervasive London-centric attitude when it launched a programme that funds artists and galleries outside the capital. G39 in Cardiff, PS² in Belfast, Site Gallery in Sheffield and Talbot Rice Gallery in Edinburgh received a total of £1.5m to support emerging artists, inviting them to develop new work and a network of contacts that will hopefully see them thrive in the city they call home.
Halfway into the first two-year residencies, Site Gallery opens Platform 2019, a works-in-progress exhibition offering a sneak preview of the practices of the six artists they are nurturing. The showcase spans two other nearby galleries for a mini-takeover of Sheffield; Site hosts Zoyander Street, Siân Williams and Lucy Vann, while Bloc Projects houses Alison J Carr and Yorkshire Artspace takes Yuen Fong Ling.