Our Table at Heritage Open Days
in Channing Hall 15th & 16th September
Our table at this event during Friday 15th and Saturday 16th September 2023 drew quite a bit of interest from visitors to Channing Hall, where a number of arts related group were part of the attraction for this year's national theme of 'Creativity Unwrapped'.
243 people visited the event at and Channing Hall.
The Sheffield Visual Arts table, where people could learn about the group's aims and work towards promoting Sheffield's great art, included a photo quiz where visitors were asked to identify pieces of public art in the City and where they are located.
A good few people indicated their interest in knowing more about and/or potentially joining the group, too.
The Hall is part of the Upper Chapel complex of buildings. The forecourt of the Chapel is home to three of the four George Fullard sculptures in Sheffield and was a stop-off point for a well-attended Public Art Trail jointly organised by SVAG and Wessex Archaeology.
The pictures below show our table just after set up.
Image: A. Calow
Image: PJA Smith
and
Sheffield Visual Arts Group
INNOVATIVE PUBLIC ART RECORDING PROJECT
LAUNCHES ACROSS SHEFFIELD
Map Goes Live !
The link below will take you to the form on which members of the Public can record artworks which may have been missed.
It is open until the end of January 2023
Image: @maciejsphotos on Instagram_Maciej Lubomski
Image: Wessex Archaeology
Wessex Archaeology has collaborated with project partners Sheffield Visuals Arts Group and Sheffield residents to create new data exploring how Sheffield artworks are perceived and valued amongst local people.
Participants will record Sheffield artworks and their condition by filling in a survey on public artwork in their local area. In doing so, they will be making a unique contribution to their city’s heritage to ultimately support the creation of a public artwork map which will be available on the websites of Wessex Archaeology and the project partners. It is hoped that the resource will in turn encourage future generations to preserve Sheffield’s valuable public art.
The key aim of the project is to connect people with the local heritage that surrounds them by creating an accessible way of recording and learning about public artwork. The project also aims to offer an updated record of Sheffield’s public artworks and their condition for their future protection.
Mapping Sheffield's public artworks will help sustain the conversation on the meaning of the city’s artworks and engage new audiences in this debate. Project participants will also learn the skills to personally advocate for their heritage and establish future conservation work.
Image: Wessex Archaeology
Image: Wessex Archaeology
Natasha Bramall, Community Engagement Coordinator says:
‘I’m excited to see how the people of Sheffield respond to this initiative. Public artwork is too often something that’s in the background and isn’t fully appreciated,
but this programme aims to place it centre stage. I’m hopeful that the project will encourage lots of people to seek out and take a close look at the incredible heritage that surrounds
us.’
Sheffield Visual Arts Group, Project Partner, added:
‘Sheffield Visual Arts Group are delighted to have reached the launch of this exciting project. What was a plan and a hope to create a lasting picture of public art in Sheffield has become a reality under the expert leadership of Natasha Bramall at Wessex Archaeology. We look forward to working together with Natasha and volunteers to make the list of Sheffield artworks a meaningful reality.’
For more information, please contact Natasha Bramall,
Community Engagement Coordinator
And Sheffield's Art Scene
Wessex Archaeology and SVAG
Launch of Public Art
Recording Resource
Volunteers' Celebratory Event
21st September 2022
This enjoyable afternoon, organised by Wessex Archaeology in conjunction with the members of Sheffield Visual Arts Group, celebrated the achievement of volunteers who have participated in the location and recording of public artworks in Sheffield. A digital map has been created by Wessex Archaeology, to be launched shortly. (A link will be available on this website). The map will allow the ongoing addition of artworks, includes a guide to their condition and an idea of what they mean to people.
Images: Dave Beautyman and Patrick Smith
Public Art in Sheffield
One of Sheffield Visual Arts Group’s aims is to champion the existence and conservation of public art in Sheffield - that is, art in the public realm, whether or not it’s situated on public property or paid for by private or public money.
We are delighted that we have established a collaboration with Wessex Archaeology, facilitated by our links with Joined Up Heritage Sheffield. Together, we have developed a project to list and to monitor the very many known and not so well known pieces of public art all over the city. Through the energy and resources of Natasha Bramall at Wessex Archaeology there is now a plan to train volunteers to discover and map Sheffield’s great public art. We will find out what it means to the communities where it’s situated, whether it’s neglected or celebrated, its origins and subsequent history, perhaps even work out ways to conserve, restore and care for it for the future. And our discoveries will become available online and on paper so Sheffielders and Sheffield’s visitors can locate and find out about these treasures much more easily.
We aim to launch this exciting new project in spring 2022. If you would like to be involved please contact Natasha Bramall at Wessex Archaeology (n.bramall@wessexarch.co.uk) or Denise West at Sheffield Visual Arts Group (denisewest3@btinternet.com), We’re pleased that other groups and organisations have also expressed an interest in the project - e.g. Joined Up Heritage Sheffield, Sheffield Archives, Our Favourite Places, and the University of the Third Age.
This is an important moment for Sheffield’s public treasures to come out of the shadows and be celebrated in all their glory!
Please contact Denise West (denisewest3@btinternet.com) and Natasha Bramall (n.bramall@wessexarch.co.uk) to lend a hand.
The Impact of Coronavirus on Arts and Culture
It is clear a new phase of the coronavirus is upon us, which will require new measures alongside a continued lockdown of the culture and arts venues here in our city - for the next few months at least.
How can community and friends schemes and local support groups like Sheffield Visual Arts Group help in the next responses to the virus?
1. SUPPORT THEM FINANCIALLY IN WHATEVER WAY YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES ALLOW.
2. IF YOU HAVE BOUGHT TICKETS FOR AN EVENT, DON’T ASK FOR A REFUND, DONATE
THE PRICE.
3. IF YOU NORMALLY SPEND ON THE ARTS, LOOK AT BUYING GIFT VOUCHERS TO USE
AFTERWARDS, OR A CD, ART WORKS, BOOKS AND CRAFTS ONLINE.
4. JOIN MAILING LISTS, ENCOURAGE SMALL BUSINESSES TO MAKE CONTACT WITH YOU
WHEN THEY RE- OPEN. SENDING AN EMAIL TO YOUR FAVOURITE ARTISTS AND VENUES
OF YOUR SUPPORT WILL ENCOURAGE THEM WHEN THEY RETURN TO WORK.
5. TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND ENCOURAGE THEM TO GET INVOLVED.
These small gestures all help art and cultural organisations get back on their feet and be around for years to come. After months of social isolation the power
of the arts to bring people together
will be needed more than ever. Just remember use it or lose it.
What are we up to ?
We aim to promote and celebrate Sheffield's outstanding visual arts, and improve access to them. Also to contribute to local policymaking.
These are the specific issues we are currently working on:
- Arts Council Consultation: 10 year strategy
- Sheffield's "Compact"
- How and where to archive Sheffield's Street Art
Other Sheffield Initiatives we contribute to:
- "Joined Up Heritage Sheffield"
Explores ways to develop a better resourced, better connected and better
communicated heritage offer for a wide range of audiences.
- "What Next ?"
What Next ? Sheffield share, debate and take collective action on issues facing
the local and national cultural sector.
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