“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.”
Edgar Degas.
The Local Pound in Liverpool recently launched their Crafted in Liverpool Competition, commissioning four locals to create pieces of work that aim to inspire and promote independent business, at the same time as giving some talented local artists some promotion. Here, we meet the 6 local judges tasked with choosing the winners!
The four winning pieces will be displayed at the Liverpool Art Fair, Pier Head over the weekend of the 26 and 27th August.
Meet the judges who are all having their own unique & positive impact on Liverpool…
Lucy Byrne, dot-art
Managing Director of dot-art Lucy founded the organisation in 2006. dot-art supports visual artists and champions art as an integral part of everyday life, selling locally sourced, affordable art, running art classes and working with schools and community groups. Lucy also runs Liverpool Art Fair, which is open 12-7 every day until 10th September on Liverpool Waterfront.
Lucy said, “We share many of the Liverpool Local Pound’s values and have always emphasised the benefits and importance of shopping independent and local, so have been delighted to be involved with both the scheme as a whole and this competition. The standard of submissions was really high and I am very much looking forward to seeing the finished works and showcasing them at Liverpool Art Fair in August.”
Sam Tawil, Bold Street Coffee
Founder of Bold Street Coffee and proprietor of another stand out independent venue in the city, The Buyers Club, Sam has been a champion of quality coffee, food and vinyl in Liverpool over the past ten years.
Ngunan Adamu, BBC Merseyside
Producer and presenter of Upfront, which is currently the only Black magazine show in Merseyside playing music and interviews which is of interest to Merseyside’s black community. With a passion for outreach work, enjoying working with youth and womens projects, Ngunan has certainly touched many different communities in Liverpool.
“The competition was a pleasure to judge, but so so so hard. I have enjoyed being part of a project that promotes the city and connects the Liverpool communities in a positive way””
David Williams, Independent Liverpool
Also known as one half of Mr and Mrs independent. David Co-founded Independent Liverpool with his life long buddy Oliver Press back in 2012. Independent Liverpool continues to shine a light on Independent business and culture in the city.
David Said, “Been such an honour to get involved with the design competition. We’ve been working alongside the Local Pound for some time now and it’s amazing to see how big it has become and that it is giving local artists a good platform and a great opportunity. The proposals have blown me away. Another remind how lucky we are to have so much homegrown talent.”
Alex Rose, USP Creative
Alex is MD of brand comms consultancy USP Creative – a creative consultancy run by business minded creatives for creatively minded businesses. For over 25 years USP have built brands that power businesses internally and externally, by changing the way people think, feel and act.
Mark Lawler, Baltic Creative
Mark is seen, rightly, as champion for the creative and digital sector in Liverpool. Managing Director of the Baltic Creative CIC which owns 110,000 sq/ft of space supporting 90 Businesses and supporting 500 Jobs. Mark is also a Board Trustee of fabulous locally based charity Be One Percent, with members committing 1% of there salary to charitable global projects.
“It’s vital that the Art Community in Liverpool continue to play a key role in the regeneration of our city and Baltic Creative are delighted to support initiatives and competitions which shine a light on the amazing work our cities artistic community is delivering. This competition in collaboration with the Local Pound, has seen work produced which has been just brilliant. All the artists can be very proud of their submissions although it’s been a nightmare to judge!”
Leon Rossiter, Colu
Economy Manager for the Local Pound in Liverpool, Leon has spent his last few years spending time on projects including Independent Liverpool, Awesome Liverpool and running a digital agency in the Baltic Triangle.
Now heading up the Local Pound’s development full time, Leon said, “I am passionate about this city, independent business and am also motivated by Colu’s mission to make money more meaningful, through sustainable local economies. It seems the entrants we have had to the competition share some of these passions, and I can’t wait to see the artwork that is produced.”
Winners will be announced by Sunday the 23rd of July.
The Liverpool Art Fair is running 7 days a week until the 10th of September, at Pier Head Village, 12-7 PM every day!
They accept Local Pounds so supporting artists can be up to 10% cheaper when topping up your local wallet, and paying in Local Pounds! Download Colu from your Android or I-phone App store.