On The Shelf: Sculpture or Ornament?

My grandmother ran a boarding house next door to the town police station. Her lodgers were mainly policemen, other working men just starting out in life, and the occasional travelling salesman. Lining the walls of her dark, linoleum-floored passage were a series of child-sized girl figures holding charity collection boxes labelled: ‘The Blind’, ‘Action for […]

The Cost Of Hope in the Art World

Posted by on Apr 7, 2026 in Art in Practice

In 2024, the creative industries contributed an estimated £145.8 billion to the UK’s GVA, with the arts subsector accounting for £11.4 billion. Yet much of that value doesn’t arise from straightforward art sales; it also reflects the many services artists are encouraged to purchase in pursuit of visibility, validation, and eventual sales. Artists are not usually the […]