Sarah Wiseman Gallery is thrilled to announce that Bicester Village are proudly sponsoring the installation of artist Athol Whitmore's 'Multitude of Stories' art work in the Children's Radiology Department at the John Radcliffe Hospital.
The art work will be made up of thousands of donated vintage toy cars and will inspire people to share stories about their own childhoods and reminisce about their adventures with toy cars! An art work for young and old alike, Athol's work will create a powerful connection in this public space.
The idea for the project was conceived during Athol's first solo exhibition at Sarah Wiseman Gallery in 2011 in response to the reaction to his art work. In the intervening years many cars have been donated through collecting drives at the gallery, hospital and through social media. The permanent location for the art work has now been chosen by the Hospital and, thanks to a generous pledge of support from Bicester Village, the project is now one step closer to being realised.
BUT WE STILL NEED YOUR HELP! We need many more toy cars to enable Athol Whitmore to complete the project. If you can only bear to part with one or two cars please do join in. The key concept behind this art work is that it is made up from our stories as a community, each car represents a memory, a childhood, a personal treasure.
A collection point will be at the Bicester Village Visitors Centre from mid- November or you can drop cars into Sarah Wiseman Gallery in Oxford.
Art work in hospitals is vital to humanising the environment and making it less intimidating for patients. Ruth Charity, Arts Adviser for the hospital's charity explains, 'Patients, visitors and staff feel art works turn clinical spaces into welcoming, positive and engaging places to visit and work - which is so important when people are dealing with their deepest fears. The 'Multitude of Stories' project creates a space to reflect and reminisce through an engaging and absorbing art work.'
Athol Whitmore is a multi-disciplinary artist living in Oxfordshire. He uses found objects, drawing and sculpture to explore themes around childhood and nostalgia. He studied at Duncan & Jordanstone School of Art for his BA & MFA and has taken part in many exhibitions in the UK and abroad.
Once the car collection has been finished the completed art work will be installed in the Children's Radiology department at the John Radcliffe Hospital towards the end of January 2016.
Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Charitable Funds is the Charity that supports the Oxford Children's Hospital. Reg Charity 1057295