KARST completed an extensive refurbishment before reopening in July this year with the Plymouth Contemporary 21 open exhibition.

Occupying a 7,000 sq. ft. industrial unit, the gallery is a more accessible and environmentally friendly space ahead of hosting the British Art Show 9 next year.

The gallery and studios now have increased physical access and an energy-efficient heating system, meaning the building can remain open throughout the year. In addition, there is zonal lighting, increased insulation, and better use of natural light.

KARST worked with LHC Architects to create a phased capital development programme called Unlocking Creative Space (UCS) that will shift the gallery and studios into a new period of sustainable growth. The renovations conclude the first phase of the UCS plan.

A new accessible entrance and disabled access platform lift at ground floor level provide first floor access for the first time for wheelchair users and those with young children in pushchairs. In addition, a fully accessible and DDA compliant toilet is available.

KARST Executive Director Donna Howard said the improvements would increase operational time and programming capacity, attracting more artists and major exhibitions.

She added: “For the first time, we will operate as a cultural space that is both physically and visibly accessible to all. We believe everyone should enjoy culture. These improvements ensure that we remove the physical barriers to participation and are accessible and welcoming for all.”

The refurbishment of the space includes double-glazed windows and doors to allow natural ventilation, increase thermal performance and improve comfort levels. The works will simultaneously provide a more stable and secure environment for showing contemporary art. Environmentally considerate design, such as the use of more natural daylight, has also been incorporated.

The gallery received a grant of £270,000 from the Arts Council’s Small Capital Grants funding programme, which focuses on providing organisations with the proper facilities to produce and present great work. The fund enables organisations to develop resilience and become more sustainable businesses.

The Arts Council grant brought the total investment in the project to more than £400k. Other generous supporters of the project are Garfield Weston, Foyle Foundation, The Box, and Plymouth City Council (PCC).

The gallery reopened on 7th July as a co-host for Plymouth Contemporary 2021 alongside the Arts Institute and in partnership with The Box.

The exhibition is free, with no booking required. Open Wednesday-Saturday, 11 am – 5 pm.

An international line-up of established and emerging creative talent has been selected for exhibition at this year’s Plymouth Contemporary.

Twenty-nine artists from around the world, working across different and varying disciplines including fine art and performance, will exhibit 44 works of art for this third staging of the prestigious event.

Held across two galleries in the city – KARST and the University of Plymouth’s Levinsky Gallery – and with support from The Box, Plymouth Contemporary 2021 will run from 7 July – 5 September, and will explore the theme of ‘Making It’.

“Plymouth Contemporary 2021 is testament to the unbridled creativity of our contemporary artists,”

said Mary Costello, Exhibitions Coordinator for The Arts Institute at the University.

“Despite all challenges, they continue ‘making it’ and have responded to this theme in a myriad of interesting, intriguing and innovative ways. Most of all, the sheer joy of creating shines through, and we’re delighted to invite the public to visit this celebration of today’s contemporary artists.”

First staged in 2015, the Plymouth Contemporary supports new ideas and a risk-taking approach across all art forms, and previously featured artists – such as Naomi Frears, Thomas Goddard and Michael Cox – have gone on to achieve national and international success.

For the 2021 event, an open call was made to artists to respond to the Making It theme – and more than 130 from Europe and America submitted proposals. Some focused upon the act of making or shaping a physical work or idea. Others interpreted it in terms of success or making a difference to people or the community.

A selection panel, including renowned artist Heather Phillipson and independent arts consultant, writer and mentor Manick Govinda, as well as representatives from the University, The Box and KARST, then considered the submissions and selected the final line up.

Nicoletta Lambertucci, Contemporary Art Curator at The Box, said:

“After an incredibly tough year for the creative sector, I am thrilled to finally see Plymouth Contemporary 2021 taking shape with such a strong list of artists. It is a project that offers an insightful commentary on the world through a diverse range of practices. It has been great to be part of the selection panel, I really enjoyed the process and I look forward to seeing the exhibition.”

“It was a great pleasure to be on the selection panel for this year’s Plymouth Contemporary, and to be able to get an insight on how artists interpreted the theme of ‘Making It’,”

added Manick Govinda.

“The process was rigorous, enlightening and I am delighted by the choices we collectively made. I look forward to seeing the show.”

Among those to be selected, include:

• Anna Chrystal Stephens, who uses sculpture, action and photography. Anna’s two pieces – Hack Sink and Paracord – reference both the extreme difficulties facing artists in the current climate, and the joy of using creativity to envisage positive alternative futures;
• Jennifer Taylor, who works across live performance, film and sculpture. Jennifer will produce two pieces – Lunar Dawn and Voyager – that explore ritualistic behaviour and systems of control, each with a distinctive lo-fi, makeshift aesthetic;
• Harriet Bowman, who works with sculpture, text and performance. Harriet will be exhibiting an audio piece of work and a sculpture, which showcase her fascination with leather, but also themes such as grief and aspiration; and
• Andy Harper, who works in paint. Andy will be exhibiting a new oil painting, Gaze Contingent.
  Members of the public will be able to attend Plymouth Contemporary 2021 without the need to book. Several prizes will also be awarded before the end of the exhibition.

Ben Borthwick, Head of Creative Programme at KARST, said:

“Plymouth Contemporary 2021 will be the first time KARST reopens its doors to the public since a major refurbishment and upgrade of our building. We can’t wait to invite visitors back into our massively improved space to see the exciting range of works on display. KARST is really pleased to have partnered on Plymouth Contemporary since it was created as it continues to go from strength to strength.”

The full list of artists selected for exhibition are: Camilla Alberti, Chris Alton, Bridgette Ashton, Bruce Asbestos, Kelly Best + Herbivore, Caroline Bugby, Gordon Dalton, Kez Dearmer, Stephanie Douet, Nick Ervinck, Rosalind Faram, Damian Griffiths, Andy Harper, Sadie Hennessy, Will Hughes, Seungjo Jeong, Dean Knight, Molly Erin McCarthy, Charlotte McGuinness, James Moore, Paula Morison, Sang-Mi Rha, Janet Sainsbury, Anna Chrystal Stephens, Jennifer Taylor, Marianne Walker, Kate Williams and K. Yoland.

KARST has received a grant of £42000 from the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund to help the organisation recover and reopen.

More than £300 million has been awarded to thousands of cultural organisations across the country including KARST in the latest round of support from the Culture Recovery Fund, the Culture Secretary announced today. Plymouth’s latest cultural offering, The Box, is among the other recipients in the city.

Alongside providing increased financial stability for KARST, the grant will contribute towards increasing physical access to the gallery by enabling the installation of a contactless entry system. The system will help to reduce any future risk of COVID-19 transmission as KARST reopens to the public.

Additionally, a proportion of the grant will support an ongoing reduction in studio hire fees to help KARST studio artists emerge from the pandemic. The grant will also be used to engage a consultant to develop and implement a post-COVID fundraising strategy and campaign.

More than £800 million in grants and loans has already been awarded to support almost 3,800 cinemas, performance venues, museums, heritage sites and other cultural organisations dealing with the immediate challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.

The second round of awards made today will help organisations to look ahead to the spring and summer and plan for reopening and recovery. After months of closures and cancellations to contain the virus and save lives, this funding will be a much-needed helping hand for organisations transitioning back to normal in the months ahead.

Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden, said:

“Our record breaking Culture Recovery Fund has already helped thousands of culture and heritage organisations across the country survive the biggest crisis they’ve ever faced.

Now we’re staying by their side as they prepare to welcome the public back through their doors – helping our cultural gems plan for reopening and thrive in the better times ahead.”

Donna Howard, Executive Director, said:

“We are delighted to receive this support from the Culture Recovery Fund. As well as contributing to ongoing operating costs which would ordinarily have been met through income generated, a significant amount of this grant will be used to create a reserves fund, giving KARST financial security for the first time as we continue to grow.

The grant will also support fundraising generation which will be essential for KARST’s sustainability in the run-up to British Art Show 9 and beyond.”

Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair, Arts Council England, said:

“Investing in a thriving cultural sector at the heart of communities is a vital part of helping the whole country to recover from the pandemic. These grants will help to re-open theatres, concert halls, and museums and will give artists and companies the opportunity to begin making new work.

We are grateful to the Government for this support and for recognising the paramount importance of culture to our sense of belonging and identity as individuals and as a society.”

The funding awarded today is from a £400 million pot which was held back last year to ensure the Culture Recovery Fund could continue to help organisations in need as the public health picture changed. The funding has been awarded by Arts Council England, as well as Historic England and National Lottery Heritage Fund and the British Film Institute.

KARST has been awarded funding to research a digital solution to international artistic collaboration restrictions because of the Covid-19 epidemic.

KARST will receive money from the British Council Arts Digital Collaboration Fund to research the development of a collaborative digital platform that aims to preserve and interpret Highlife’s legacy, reinventing it for a new generation of musicians and audiences in Ghana and internationally.

Highlife is a music genre that originated in the early 20th century in present-day Ghana. It uses traditional Akan music’s melodic and main rhythmic structures but is played with Western instruments. Characterised by horns and multiple guitars, in the 1970s it acquired an uptempo, synth-driven sound.

Through the project Mogya Na Nsuo (Blood and Water), KARST will work with UK artist Larry Achiampong and Julia Greenway, a curator focussing on how digital media influences the aesthetic presentation of gender, economics, and environment. It is a collaboration with the Bokoor African Popular Music Archive Foundation in Ghana.

Continue reading “KARST awarded funding for international digital collaboration”

New dates for the UK’s most influential contemporary art exhibition, British Art Show 9 (BAS 9), have been confirmed today. The nationwide tour will culminate in Plymouth from 8 October to 23 December 2022. Prior to this, the exhibition will be displayed in Aberdeen, Wolverhampton and Manchester.

Held every five years to showcase the work of British artists who have made a significant contribution to international contemporary art, BAS9 will be shown across four city venues – KARST, The Box, The Levinsky Gallery at the University of Plymouth and The Gallery at Plymouth College of Art.

Continue reading “New dates announced for British Art Show 9”