View Tube Art: Sparked 2011-12
Inspired by the public art pieces in the London 2012 Olympic Park, Sparked is an eight-month educational exhibition series as part of the View Tube Art Education programme, from October 2011-May 2012.
The View Tube sits on The Greenway in East London, next to the London 2012 Olympic Park, it is a community arts and education venue, with a cafe and bike hire.
Sparked is funded by The Legacy List, a new charity established to support the long term cultural, social and physical regeneration of London’s future Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and its surroundings.
Sparked is supported by Bow Arts
Here’s a short film summarising the Sparked exhibition series, which ran as part of View Tube Art from October 2011 to May 2012.
Watch an interview with Lemn Sissay talking about his poem Spark Catchers, commissioned for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Sparked with Lemn Sissay opens this Friday 30 March at View Tube.
Created for a permanent poetry installation on the Olympic Park, Spark Catchers is Lemn Sissay’s poem celebrating the rich heritage of the East End where the Olympic Park now sits.
Spark Catchers delves into the incendiary time in 19th century Britain when the first un-unionised workers went on strike against their poor and dangerous working conditions. The industrial action taken at the Bryant and May match factory, found on the edge of the Olympic Park in Bow, helped spark a social revolution changing working conditions across Britain.
Sparked with Lemn Sissay celebrates this inspirational story and East London’s rich heritage as it welcomes the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, becoming another landmark in its captivating history.
The last in the Sparked exhibition series, the exhibition will run until View Tube’s closure before the Olympic Games until May 16th.
Family Day - Saturday 14th April, 10am-3pm: free art workshops for families inspired by Lemn Sissay’s Sparked exhibition
Our new flyer for the last Sparked exhibition, with the first poet commissioned for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Lemn Sissay
Portraits of the Park - animation made as part of the February 2012 View Tube Sparked Family Day.
During the View Tube Sparked Family Day in February 2012, families worked with tutors from The Prince’s Drawing School and Olympic Park Artist in Residence Neville Gabie, to create portraits of the Olympic Park.
Each participant was given just 3mins 26secs to complete the task, the world record time for the 1500 metres. Over 200 drawings were created, then pieced together to make this unique animation.
We’re absolutely delighted to announce that View Tube are working with renowned poet Lemn Sissay for the final exhibition in the Sparked series. Working with curators from Jotta, Lemn’s exhibition will be inspired by his poem Spark Catchers, commissioned for Art in the Park as part of the Winning Words project.
Opening on March 24th at View Tube.
A selection of photos from our Family Day in February as part of the Sparked with Neville Gabie exhibition. Working with The Prince’s Drawing School, participants were asked to draw a portrait of the Olympic Park in 3 minutes 26 seconds, the world record for 1500 metres. These are currently being made into a short animation incorporating everyone’s drawings, offering a unique record of the Olympic Park, which will be uploaded shortly.
If you missed the launch screenings this weekend for the Sparked exhibition with Olympic Park Artist in Residence Neville Gabie, then don’t panic as we will be screening Twelve Seventy every Sunday for the duration of the Sparked exhibition.
Twelve Seventy is the new film from Neville Gabie featuring previously unseen footage of the Olympic Park Aquatics Centre and the wonderful story of Sam the bus driver, who was amongst the first to swim in the Olympic pool.
Screenings of the 27 minute long film are upstairs at View Tube every Sunday until 18 March at 1pm and 1.45pm, no booking is necessary.
Sparked with Neville Gabie is open daily at View Tube from 9am-5pm until 18th March 2012. Entry is free. A free family day runs as part of this exhibition on Saturday 18 February from 10am-3pm.
It really is no fun watching paint dry! Whilst we give time for the freshly painted floor to dry, here’s a sneak peak at Neville Gabie’s Sparked exhibition.
You can see it in all it’s glory at the launch screening day this Sunday 29th January, with screenings of Twelve Seventy taking place upstairs at 11am, 12noon, 1pm and 2pm.
Grab a copy of the Metro today and get your very own Olympic artwork by Neville Gabie.
As we’re busy installing Neville’s exhibition, opening this weekend with launch screenings on Sunday 29th, you can take home your very own piece of artwork free in today’s Metro! Neville has recreated Seurat’s famous Bathers At Asnieres as a photograph, but replacing the characters with workers from the Olympic Site.
You can see other works produced by Neville, as part of his Olympic Park residency, in the next Sparked exhibition at View Tube. With Freeze Frame the size of a billboard, a film of Neville’s attempt to sit in every seat in the Olympic Stadium , and Twelve Seventy, photographs and film of one of the Olympic Park bus drivers swimming the length of her route in the Aquatics centre, the exhibition is an intriguing insight into Neville’s time spent ‘the other side of the fence’, and his attempts to understand and comprehend the vast nature of the Oylmpics.
Sparked with Neville Gabie: launch screenings of Twelve Seventy this Sunday 29th Jan, every hour at 11am, 12noon, 1pm and 2pm at upstairs at View Tube. Then screenings every Sunday at 1pm and 1.45pm until 18 March.
The exhibition runs 7 days a week from 9am-5pm and is free to attend. Pick up an activity worksheet and come along to the free family day on Saturday 18th February, with your chance to work with Neville Gabie and other artists in art workshops.
