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Poppy sculptures put the focus on remembrance in Hull

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Thousands of poppies handmade by schools, community groups and museum visitors across Humberside will form part of two special Remembrance Day art installations in Hull by local artist Martin Waters at Ferens Art Gallery, from 27 October - 23 November, and Holy Trinity Parish Church, from 1–28 November.

The poppies, which were made over the summer to commemorate the First World War, have been imaginatively transformed by Martin into two different but equally powerful 3-D reminders of the horrors of war, that, in a personal touch, visitors will be invited to add their own poppy to in remembrance of a loved on.

The poppy installation at Ferens Art Gallery will complement the gallery’s WW1 exhibition ‘When War Hit Home’ which runs until 4 January 2015. “This is the first time we’ve had poppy art at Ferens Art Gallery and Martin’s modern interpretation of WW1 will bring another dimension to the images and objects featured in When War Hit Home, our WW1 exhibition,” says Tom Goulder, assistant curator (projects), Hull Museums.

Holy Trinity Parish Church is looking forward to its fourth installation by Martin, which is sure to strike a chord with visitors says Reverend Dr Neal Barnes, vicar at Holy Trinity Parish Church: “Martin Waters’ imaginative use of the simple poppy never fails to engage and remind us all about the horror and awful sacrifice of war. The Poppy Drift art installation we had last year generated huge interest and we have no doubt that Martin’s sculpture in this the centenary year of the Great War will be an equally moving and stark tribute to those lost in war and conflict.”

Martin is fast becoming known as the Poppy Man for his thought-provoking poppy sculptures which not only help people understand the horror of war but are also visually stunning pieces of art in their own right - as he says: “It’s important that we remember and learn from the conflicts that have gone before and are still happening now – poppies strike an emotional chord with people, and the sculptures are designed so that people can get up close to them and make up their own minds about what they mean to them.”

Hull’s poppy installations form part of a set of five artworks by Martin across the East Riding, Hull and North Lincolnshire as part of the Joining Up The Humber Museums initiative. The other venues are: Beverly Art Gallery (now until 22 November), Beverley Minster (29 October to 19 November), and St Lawrence Church in Scunthorpe (7-20 November). The installations all share the theme of remembrance but are all different having been created specifically for each site. Entry to each is free.

The poppy installations form part of the work of the Joining Up The Humber Museums initiative, funded by Arts Council England, which has funded* a series of commemorative World War I-themed exhibitions at local authority museums and attractions throughout the Humber region. These include:

  • When War Hit Home at Ferens Art Gallery (until 4 January 2015), which explores the effects of the First World War on Hull and its people;

  • For King and Country at North Lincolnshire Museum (until 14 June 2015), which focuses on the experiences of local people both on the Front Line and back home in Britain;

  • *In Memoriam: Reflections on War at Beverley Art Gallery (until 22 November) , which explores the theme of memory and conflict featuring objects from the Museum collections;

  • Goole and the Great War at Goole Museum (until 25 November), which looks at the role of Goole as a port during the First World War and its effects on life in the town.

    For more information on the art installations and World War I themed exhibitions across the Humber region, please visit www.joiningupthehumber.co.uk

    *In Memoriam at Beverley Art Gallery is partially funded by Joining Up The Humber Museums and the rest by Beverley Art Gallery.

    ENDS

    For further media information or photographs, please contact:

    Jay Commins

    Pyper York Limited

    Tel:         01904 500698

    Email:    jay@pyperyork.co.uk

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