Publication in the Camden New Journal:
Window undressing! Pop-up shop art
COULD this man, standing proud in little more than a leather jockstrap, be the answer in Camden Town’s fightback against the recession? Maybe not on his own, but business interest group Camden Town Unlimited think the grinning model’s appearance at a makeshift art gallery on Tuesday night might herald the start of better days.
The unexpected strip took place at a “private view” in an empty shop in Chalk Farm Road which has been turned into a temporary exhibition room. The first show is Jockstraps And Toast, a mix of screen prints and, as the title suggests, a wall of decorated toast from artists Myles Calvert and Colin Corbett.
The eye-opening new look for a vacant high street property is Camden Town’s first “pop-up shop”.
In a deal to make the area look more alive in hard times, CTU are paying business rates for the shop in return for letting artists brighten up shops otherwise just gathering cobwebs in the downturn.
Simon Pitkeathley – who gave evidence to the Camden Business Economic Forum, a self-appointed taskforce of experts currently analysing Camden’s response to the recession – said: “We want landlords with empty shops to talk to us and discuss how we can help, rather than having vacant buildings.”
http://www.thecnj.co.uk/camden/2009/060409/news060409_17.html
Jockstraps of Peace 