British artist Gavin Turk has transformed a Vauxhall Ampera into a unique piece of art, entitled ‘Mummy’ especially for the Vauxhall Art Car Boot Fair. The car will be touring the UK this summer as part of the Fair, having visited Liverpool on 5th June and will be arriving in Folkestone on 30th August.
The car is more of a canvas than a finished art piece and this is exactly the premise behind the idea. Starting with a completely clean car clad in clean cotton duck canvas, as it gets moved around the country, it will gradually pick up dirt, flies, exhaust soot and accidental stains & spills too. The idea is that this creates a piece of living and evolving art.
The car was first unveiled at the Vauxhall Art Car Boot Fair in June, where Gavin also sold a unique edition of 50 pieces, called Emission Edition. The pieces were created by holding a canvas against an exhaust pipe and then accelerating, the soot from the exhaust leaving a unique mark on each canvas. Gavin Turk commented on the commission,
“The idea was to completely wrap the Vauxhall Ampera in canvas and then let nature take its course so the car in a way becomes a painting. I loved the idea of using the car as a way to reflect society and our environment.”
The Vauxhall Art Car Boot Fair features renowned and up and coming artists who personally pitch up to sell their original and limited edition works of art out of the back of new and vintage Vauxhall Motors, at very special prices. Since its inception in 2004, the Fair has commissioned artists to transform a car into a new piece of art work just for the day. Past commissions have included the likes of Sir Peter Blake, Pam Hogg, Oliver Guy Watkins, Natasha Law, Sarah Baker and more. Gavin Turk is the first artist to create a permanent car commission.
The Vauxhall Ampera is the first-ever Extended-Range Electric Vehicle (E-REV). It uses electricity alone to drive for up to 50 miles and uses a petrol-powered generator to provide the electricity that allows you to drive up to a further 310 miles. 59 leading journalists from 23 European countries voted it European Car Of The Year 2012.
Gavin Turk has taken part in every Vauxhall Art Car Boot Fair since 2004, selling limited edition works ranging from tax discs, road signs, car tyres, car bumpers and more. Cars have featured widely in his work over the years; at a recent exhibition in New York, Turk produced a series of interconnected works relating to automotive components, including an edition called ‘Exhaust Drawings’.
Karen Ashton, curator of the Vauxhall Art Car Boot Fair commented,
“We are delighted that Vauxhall have supported Gavin Turk’s new artwork ‘Mummy’ for 2014 – it is both a fantastic way to celebrate Gavin’s wonderful and inventive contributions to the Fair over the years and an emblem of Vauxhall’s continued and deepening support of our event.”
For each of the upcoming Vauxhall Art Car Boot Fair events, Turk will be creating a brand new limited edition, to be unveiled on the day. Taking a quintessentially British concept and turning it on its head, the Fair is famous for being the day the art world lets its hair down, coming together to fill the car park with English eccentricity, quirky ideas, incredible bargains, cool art, eclectic wares and madcap performances.
It’s an art-buying frenzy from the moment the doors open to the thousand plus queue, for the chance to grab the special just-for-the-day artworks. There’s something for every pocket with works typically on sale for between £10 to £1,000.
Gavin Turk’s artwork is revealed in a short film which offers an insight into the process and inspiration behind the designs.
Source; Vauxhall
