- Prison Residencies
Shepton Mallet Prison C-Wing, 18th Sept – 3rd Oct 2021
Sharon was recently a part of the Prison Residencies group show, based at Shepton Mallet Prison in Somerset, curated by Luminara Florescu and Amanda Lynch. Her research for this site specific artwork focussed on two women prisoners from the Victorian era, resident at the Prison.
For many women incarcerated, poverty was the driving force behind the crimes committed. Trying to live a secure and healthy life with little or no money was (and still is) impossible to do. Hard labor (sic) punishment was handed out to prisoners; often for theft of insignificant small items or foodstuffs, for being un-ladylike (swearing), or for being destitute.
Sharon's artwork consists of two C19th style prison aprons, made from an antique, workman’s linen smock. Each apron has the name of a former Shepton Mallet prisoner, with their crime and punishment, machine-embroidered onto it. The aprons are an acknowledgement of the women who lived a life of hardship. The chained Victorian pennies are a reminder that money, education and equality are the things women need to avoid the poverty trap.
The prison aprons are an interactive artwork, we encourage visitors to try them on and take a moment to think of the prisoners that were incarcerated in C-Wing.
The residency ran 18th Sept – 3rd Oct, 2021.
We've also minted two digital limited edition NFTs as part of this project and these are available on the energy efficient Tezos blockchain at pennydrops.xyz.
Wish You Weren't Here? 2017
A three-month residency at Elements Gallery, London.
One of us was raised in a Devonshire seaside town and the other spent many a childhood holiday at resorts in Kent and Essex. We think the traditional British seaside humour may have left its mark on us and it's a subject we often return to.
In 2017 we held a residency at Elements Gallery (part of Angus-Hughes Gallery), curated by Rebecca Feiner, bringing the seaside to the East End of London. Drawing inspiration from our own personal backgrounds, as well as interviews with local East End residents, we celebrated the heyday of the British seaside and documented the whole process on a blog.
In 2017, a University of Warwick analysis found 1957 to be Britons' happiest year of the 20th century.
What role do artists play in the gentrification of run-down areas? A moot point.
Subcultures have often played a large role in the life of the British seaside. This bikers jacket features a quote from an anonymous 'cafe racer' in the Sixties.
A favourite of Mods, the M65 Parka, featuring a quote (often cited as a definition of Mod life) from Pete Meaden, the first manager of The Who.
- Bugger Brexit 2018
In 1929, King George V was sent to the seaside resort of Bognor to recuperate from lung surgery. Clearly unimpressed with the town, he was later quoted as saying "Bugger Bognor", in response to a mooted return visit.
We reappropriated the quote for current times, with a George V penny offering some 'quiet, balanced advice' in comic-style lettering. We imagined the poster as an advert for an as-yet-unmade British theatre farce.
We made a bundle of placards and took them to the People's Vote march in Oct 2018 and the Put it to the People march in March 2019 where they proved popular with people such as Jarvis Cocker (have a look here). Some also found their way onto walls about town where they became part of the Brexit conversation.
In March 2019, the work was featured in Take Back Control, an exhibition of Brexit-related art and newspapers at The Crypt Gallery, London.
In October 2020, the work featured in Complex States: Art in the Years of Brexit, a global exhibition featuring 30 artists, venues worldwide and a cutting edge online AR platform.
We also left some painted pennies on streets, as strange mementoes of a strange time in history.
Football Shirts 2011-13
Prior to putting our thoughts on old pennies, we appliquéed and sewed some thoughts on vintage football shirts.
Nike got wind of this and promptly commissioned us to do some for them.
Shirts on display at 'Fantasista' curated by Bearspace at the Cello Factory, London 2013.
Stenciled shirt prints on board at 'Fantasista', London 2013.
Decorated Nike shirts on display at Niketown, London 2014. Photo courtesy of Rosie Lee Creative.
Decorated Nike shirts for Spartak Moscow, 2014.
