Friends, Foes and Good Companions
Friends, Foes and Good Companions is an exciting new exhibition opening Friday 28th April 2023 at the Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre. The exhibition is an IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund commission in partnership with Our Big Picture, additional support provided by Arts Council England.
Friends, Foes and Good Companions
- From 28th April to 20th August 2023
- Tuesday to Sunday and Bank Holidays 10am to 5pm
- Fishing Heritage Centre, Muriel Barker Gallery, Alexandra Dock, Grimsby DN31 1UZ
- CONTACTS:
paula@ourbigpicture.co.uk
OBPteam@ourbigpicture.co.uk
“Through this project we have made new friends from the wider fishing community and have enabled unheard voices of our industrial heritage to be heard. Together we have reflected on conflict and the tremendous comradery between Grimsby and Iceland and how today this is still built on a deep-rooted respect. This project feels like we have only just scratched the surface and at the start of an incredible journey of connection and understanding”
Paula Denton, CEO of Our Big Picture
What’s it all about?
A reportage exhibition, town-wide trail, and community workshops by artist Olivier Kugler and writer Andrew Humphreys explore the Cod Wars through the recollections of those that lived through it and reflect on the impact past and present on the fishing industry.
Friends, Foes and Good Companions is an exciting new exhibition opening Friday 28th April 2023 at the Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre. The exhibition is an IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund commission in partnership with Our Big Picture, additional support provided by Arts Council England.
Created by award winning artist Olivier Kugler and writer Andrew Humphreys, the exhibition explores relations between Grimsby and Iceland through conflict, cooperation, and fish & chips!
Capturing the voices and experiences of people connected with the fishing industry. Exploring the Cod Wars though the recollections of those that lived through it. Reflecting on the impact past and present on the fishing industry, including current and former Grimsby fishermen, fish processors, fishmongers and fish & chip shop owners, Icelandic ships’ crew, fishing company spokespersons, lumpers, diplomats and politicians.
Through the work we listen to former fishermen and visit fish auctions, smokehouses, Icelandic coastguard vessels and presidential residencies. Even join a catch of fish on its journey from the quayside in Reykjavik via the Vestmannaeyjar and Faroe Islands, and the port of Immingham, to a chip shop in Cleethorpes.
The work, which is largely interview-based, is presented in the form of drawings with text, like a graphic novel.
The exhibition comprises some 30 artworks, which will be shown at Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre. Selected pieces will also be displayed around Grimsby in the form of an art trail that can be followed with a specially created trail map accessed by QR code. The trail will be featured on Freeman Street, Freeman Street Market, Docks Beer and Grimsby town centre and other locations.
Alongside the exhibition, Olivier and Andrew will be working with Grimsby-based Our Big Picture, a charity delivering visual arts and heritage activities across Northern Lincolnshire, on an engagement and participation programme that includes drop-in sessions, schools, young people and family workshops.
Yr 5 pupil from Ormiston South Parade Academy
The exhibition has been commissioned by the Imperial War Museum IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund in partnership with Our Big Picture
Additional supported by Arts Council England
Thank you to our partners and collaborators
- Olivier Kugler and Andrew Humphreys
- The Sea Dogs and the many fishing folks for their time and contributions in shaping this exhibition
- The Fishermen’s Mission
- Imperial War Museums
- NE Lincolnshire Council – Grimsby Creatives
- Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre team
- Reykjavik Maritime Museum and their volunteers
IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund
IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund
The IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund is a national partnership programme of over 20 commissions inspired by the heritage of conflict. Led by Imperial War Museums (IWM), the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund was created following the success of 14-18 NOW, the official UK arts programme for the First World War centenary.
To mark the end of the First World War centenary, Imperial War Museums and 14-18 NOW worked together to co-commission the critically acclaimed film They Shall Not Grow Old by Academy Award winner Peter Jackson, which was seen by nearly 5 million people globally. Following the unprecedented success of the film, 14-18 NOW and IWM agreed that a share of the film’s royalties would be used to support a new programme of artist commissions, the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund. A total of £2.5 million is being made available to artists and cultural organisations across the UK.
Through the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund, IWM is now working in partnership with cultural organisations from across the UK to commission over 20ambitious new artworks inspired by the heritage of conflict and created by world-leading and emerging contemporary artists. These new commissions will forge new opportunities for artistic engagement, bring art to audiences in new and relevant ways by connecting people, places and experiences, and kick-start cultural dialogue as we recover from the wide-reaching impacts of COVID-19. The commissions will go on public display across the UK from 2022.
Press Release for Our Big Picture IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund – FF&GC April-Aug 2023 available here
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Our Big Picture
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