Emerging Artists Are Pledging to Support One Another During the Health Crisis by Buying Each Other’s Work Through Instagram

Artists around the world are suffering from the uncertainty
caused by the continued spread of coronavirus. In a bid to help
them carry on as the world shuts down, one artist has launched a
simple pledge to encourage them to help each other.

Matthew Burrows started the Artist Support Pledge initiative to
alleviate some of the stress the pandemic has caused, as many
artists have now found themselves without work. Exhibitions and
sales have been shut down, and teaching and technical support has
become difficult to access. The project, which he launched on his
Instagram page, “was really a response to the current situation, a
creative solution to how I might help myself but also friends and
colleagues through this period, by utilizing the generosity
of  the arts community—which is abundant,” Burrows tells
Artnet News.

The idea is simple: Artists who commit to the pledge will post
images of a work that’s for sale, for no more than £200 ($230), and
each time their sales reach £1,000 ($1,155) they promise to buy
another artist’s work for £200.

“I realized the work needed to be cheap enough to make selling
it an act of generosity, but also I needed to make that
infectious,” Burrows says, “generosity creates generosity.”

Burrows first posted about the initiative a couple of days
ago, selling his own 2012 etching, titled The
Seer, and he received an “immediate response.” There are
now more than 1,000 posts, which he hopes to translate into 1,000
pledges. “That’s £1 million flowing into the hands of artists, many
of whom are in severe financial stress. It’s an ambitious target
but easily achievable if people act generously and people get
really great art out of this.”

Burrows has since been able to launch an award to encourage
people to support the initiative. The Tyson Award, supported by
another artist, Keith Tyson, will grant £200 to five artists to
spend toward completing their own pledges. The award will be made
weekly for five weeks, with the artists chosen by a guest selector.
The first selector is the director of Hastings Contemporary,
Elizabeth Gilmore, who will choose a round of artists on March 21.
Future selectors include the artist Matthew Collings, and the
director of Vigo Gallery, Toby Clarke.

Burrows is currently looking for more contributions to extend
the award through the end of the pandemic. “Watch this space,” he
says.

The post Emerging Artists Are Pledging to Support One
Another During the Health Crisis by Buying Each Other’s Work
Through Instagram appeared first on artnet News.