Migrate Art presents ‘Scorched Earth’ a charity auction and exhibition of new works by leading artists, organised in direct response to the widespread deliberate destruction of crop fields in Iraq. The participating artists have created new works using paint pigmented with ash collected by Migrate Art from land scorched by these fires.
Anish Kapoor Migrate Art Scorched Earth
The full list of fourteen artists creating original works for auction will include Antony Gormley, Anish Kapoor, Conor Harrington, Jason Martin, Jules de Balincourt, Loie Hollowell, Mona Hatoum, Nathalie du Pasquier, Rachel Whiteread, Raqib Shaw, Richard Deacon, Richard Long, Walid Siti and Yahon Chang. Also as a part of the initiative, Shepard Fairey has designed two limited-edition screen prints using ink pigmented with the ash, which will be available for sale through Migrate Art from October for £650 each.
Raqib Shaw Migrate Art Scorched Earth
The works created for auction will be exhibited at Cork Street Galleries, Mayfair until 27th September 2020, before being sold as part of Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary Day Sale on 23rd October 2020. The exhibition will also feature a new drawing by Piers Secunda made with ink produced by grinding down charcoal Secunda collected in 2018 from the interior of the Mosul Museum in Iraq, which was partially destroyed by ISIS during their occupation of the city. Charcoal drawings on paper made by children living in an Iraqi refugee camp during art workshops hosted by Migrate Art, will also be on display. All funds raised will be divided between Migrate Art and their three charity partners – RefuAid, Refugee Community Kitchen and The Lotus Flower – whose work supports those affected by the global refugee crisis.
Nathalie Du Pasquier
Migrate Art has worked with Jackson’s Art Supplies to create the high quality oil and acrylic ash paint used by the artists. Tubes of these limited edition paints will be available for sale from 2nd October via Jackson’s website for £20 per tube.
Since 2016, Migrate Art has worked with major contemporary artists in support of projects which aid refugees around the world. In 2019 founder Simon Butler visited refugee camps in Iraq with one of the organisation’s charity partners The Lotus Flower, which provides support to women and children displaced by war. The region has faced the deliberate destruction of hundreds of thousands of acres of crops, amounting to tens of millions of US Dollars in lost revenue and threatening food security. These destructive fires have been attributed to organised militia groups who are using them as an intimidation tactic – most likely ISIS. In response to the crisis, Simon collected ash from the burnt crop fields with the intention of using it to produce paint to be given to artists to use to create original artworks.
Richard Deacon
“I’m very pleased to support Migrate Art because I believe in the mission to support refugees and those made vulnerable by war and unrest. My ‘Rise From the Ashes’ dove screen print incorporates ash from burnt crop fields in Iraq into the black ink. I love the dove as a symbol of peace, but in these prints the doves are not white, but black and red, relating more to the concept of a phoenix rising from the flames of destruction. Art can encourage compassion, lift the spirit, and heal through material benefit to a worthy cause, all of which I hope these prints can help to foster.”
-Shepard Fairey
Loie Hollowell
Now– 27th September at Cork Street Galleries, 24 Cork Street, London, W1S 3NJ Opening hours: 12– 6pm every day (closed Monday 21 September)
About Migrate Art:
Founded in 2016 by Simon Butler, and later joined by Ian Syer, Migrate Art works with leading contemporary artists in support of projects which aid refugees around the world. The Migrate Art team has over 20 years combined experience working in contemporary art. Butler has worked in many of London’s most prominent galleries and Syer co-founded My Art Broker, one of the UK’s leading online art marketplaces. Major past projects include ‘Multicolour’ which invited artists including Anish Kapoor, Sean Scully and Rachel Whiteread to create works using pencils and crayons found on the former site of the demolished Calais Jungle refugee camp. The works were auctioned at Phillips in 2019, raising £131,000. Migrate Art has raised over £200,000, helping to fund projects across three continents, positively impacting the lives of over 15,000 people.
About RefuAid:
RefuAid has developed a programme that supports access to language tuition, education, employment and family reunification for refugees who are granted asylum in the UK. RefuAid offers interest-free loans for those who have been forced to leave their country and are unable to find suitable employment once in the UK. RefuAid’s programme provides an opportunity to gain relevant qualifications, re-train, learn English and find employment.
About The Lotus Flower:
The Lotus Flower provides safety, support and education for women and children who have been displaced
by war and develops opportunities and tools for these women to become financially independent. They offer psychological support for those who have experienced extreme violence or sexual assault in their home country. The Lotus Flower was founded by Taban Shoresh, a former Kurdish child refugee, who escaped the clutches of Sadam Hussain’s regime in the 1980s.
About Refugee Community Kitchen:
Refugee Community Kitchen serves nourishing food to displaced people in the UK and northern France. Entirely volunteer-run and donation-based, they are committed to serving wholesome food with dignity and respect to people in need. Since December 2015, they have served over 2 million hot meals.
