Postkarte from the front

West Yorkshire Print Workshop (WYPW) have been successful in obtaining Heritage Lottery funding for a project based around a collection of original WW1 postcards. This coincides with the 100th anniversary of the battle of the Somme. The culmination of the project will be an exhibition within the gallery at WYPW (9th July – 3rd September 2016), which will include a selection of the postcards, and additional relevant artwork and interpretation generated by working with local schools and the community.

They have employed me as their professional artist to work within schools using a variety of printmaking techniques to explore, interpret and respond to the role the postcard played as a means of communicating with family and friends with soldiers at the front. The visual outcome will stay true to the essence and physical appearance of the postcard but in a creative and visually appealing way, as it will play a key part in the gallery exhibition. The project may well complement existing WW1 projects being undertaken in school.