The Establishment of False Narratives Artwork

In 1984 I was sent to live in Amsterdam with anarchist squatters. Like some half-remembered dream, on my final night in the city we were walked down dark back streets through an abandoned neighbourhood before arriving at a tall building with a heavy front door. The man leading our party banged forcefully and a shutter opened. Dutch pleasantries were exchanged, and we were allowed to enter. Down a dimly lit corridor we passed and along the wall, in a neatly arranged display was a long line of baseball bats, each with its own gas mask. Made from recycled timbers from artists studio walls, taken from closed studio building. This is one in a series of works exploring ideas around people and state. How are we to protect ourselves and from what are we protecting ourselves? This work is an attempt to address the deficit in how British people are taught history. The prevailing narratives being state driven and reinforcing while stories of people and social politics are buried or forgotten. My starting point was the corruption of the Poppy as a sign of peace. How it was initially used to raise money for the injured and forgotten (by the state) war veterans of WWI but has been co-opted by the very same state and the military industrial complex to now symbolise their forms of patriotism. I have tried to display, from memory only, my own poor understanding of the social history's of the United Kingdom, from the Peasants revolt through to Black Lives Matter and extinction rebellion - set against the back drop of Boris Johnsons wallpaper.

Multi-paneled Mixed Media:Photography on Wood

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:78 W x 78 H x 10 D in

Number of Panels:6

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