SAATCHI GALLERY PRINTS & ORIGINALS GALLERY 5 January – 9 February 2017
London, UK - On 5 January 2017, the Saatchi Gallery will open 50 x 50 II in the Prints & Originals Gallery.
50 x 50II is an exhibition that presents 50 new works of art by 50 emerging artists. All the works are prints measuring 50 x 70cm and each print is priced at only £95 to maximise the opportunity for people to buy exciting new contemporary art.
Each artist has collaborated with the Jealous Print Studio to produce a limited edition of 36 signed and numbered prints. Forty-five of the works were selected as part of the Jealous Needs You programme which openly invited submissions from artists in the UK and abroad. Five of these initial 45 works were selected by a Saatchi Gallery curator. Additionally, the Saatchi Gallery has commissioned five more works to be exclusively launched at 50 x 50 II. These are new works by Ana Bangueses, Darrell Hawkins, SKU, Elektro Team, and Phoebe Greenwood.
The open nature of the submission process has led to a very diverse range of printed works. The works cover many different styles, subjects, and tones. Some works aim to titillate or shock whilst others are objects of decorative beauty. Some works are abstract or constitute meditations on colour or form; whilst others reflect upon current affairs or the human condition.
In addition to the 50 works to be exhibited at Saatchi Gallery, prints by a further 21 artists were produced by the Jealous Print Studio for their 2016 Jealous Needs You programme.
Some of the 50 artists are established and others are newly emerging. The names of some, such as Rob Ryan, Magnus Gjoen, Joe Webb and Magda Archer are becoming widely known. Others such as SKU and Phoebe Greenwood are being presented for the first time. Some artists, such as Zabou and NEMCO have strong reputations as street artists. Other artists, such as Tim Head and Steven Wilson are successful multimedia designers and illustrators. The selection also includes award-winning artists such as Dominc Beattie; and fine artists such as Katerina Georgopoulou and Darrell Hawkins.
The Saatchi Gallery was founded in 1985 to provide a platform to bring contemporary art to as wide an audience as possible and make it accessible. Over the last five years the Saatchi Gallery has hosted 17 out of the 20 most visited exhibitions in London, according to The Art Newspaper’s survey of international museum attendance, and is also ranked amongst the world’s top five most liked museums on Facebook and Twitter by Museum Analytics. Entry to all exhibitions at the Saatchi Gallery is free.
