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Words by John Jervis
For better or worse, the visual arts haven’t featured large in Britain’s national mythologies of late. Yet, in September 2018, Theresa May launched what is now known as Festival UK 2022, proclaiming: ‘Just as millions of Britons celebrated their nation’s great achievements in 1951, we want to showcase what makes our country great today.’ This ‘Festival of Brexit’ was met with scorn, hilarity and anger among artistic communities – followed, last year, by infighting and accusations of hypocrisy as groups from Assemble to the White Pube accepted the government’s shilling.
So far, so normal. More interesting is that May chose to leverage popular affection for the Festival of Britain in her flawed attempt to heal the wounds of Brexit. Why, 70 years on, does this one cultural event – first proposed in 1943 as a commemorative rehash of the Great Exhibition (with a not-dissimilar mix of industry and imperialism) – endure in the national imaginati
The Skinny
Who Is The Cultural Worker? Art, work, and change
As museums and galleries begin to open their doors again, and with complaints that funding is tighter than ever, where does that leave the cultural workers who were already in precarious situations before the pandemic? Article by Katie Dibb | 30 Apr 2021
International Workers Day, or May Day as it is more commonly known, is celebrated around the world as a day of protest, parties and direct action. The concept of the ‘worker’ can give you immediate dusty visuals of the past – the industrial revolution, the unregulated working day or children climbing up chimneys. Or worse, the ‘worker’ has become an over-intellectualised word used by everyone but the worker themselves.
The White Pube, the art disruptors behind the online takedown of the Tate’s racist Rex Whistler mural, have written a manifesto for a fairer art world and plastered it on billboards across London and Liverpool.
Described by The White Pube’s Zarina Muhammad and Gabrielle de la Puente as “millennial Jenny Holzer, in Twitter speak, and with a very specific agenda”, the project features posters and billboards that address some of the systemic injustices and inequalities within the art world, while suggesting ways to improve them.
The project is a part of Your Space Or Mine, a platform led by media group BUILDHOLLYWOOD. It includes suggestions such as, “Universal Basic Income and affordable housing so that everyone, including artists, can make a living” and “Curators should ask the public to see what they think galleries and museums should be used for’ and ‘dear museums, give back all stolen objects”, among others.
The White Pube takeover billboards to address systemic injustices and inequalities in the art world
The White Pube partner with BuildHollywood to takeover billboards across London and Liverpool for the next three months.
Words
BuildHollywood, an independent media group operating in the outdoor space, has launched a new collaboration with The White Pube. The latest instalment in its Your Space or Mine campaign, which gives artists and creatives a platform on the street, The White Pube’s installation is a series of posters and billboards designed “to address some of the systemic injustices and inequalities within the art world.”
Since 2015 The White Pube’s founders Gabrielle de la Puente and Zarina Muhammad have continuously addressed “The overly stale, pale and male state of the art industry,” via its online art magazine. In turn creating a conversation that is “anti-elitist, anti-white-washing, anti-patriarchy”, the pair explore the gap between art, the market, in