Jubilee Painting on Jermyn Street

I was part of a team facilitating a free public art workshop in Jermyn Street Jubilee Fete. The event was co-organised by The Art of London and The Crown Estate to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in St James’s, Central London on 4th July 2022. Anyone could join in art-making for all ages without a prior booking. Materials were provided and artist were present to assist participants and discuss whatever issues came up in the work processes. Art related conversations varied from colour mixing and features of Georgian houses to painting perspective, atmosphere of celebration, or impression of outer space! Our communal canvas was one of the highlights of the event. The participatory focus of the communal street scene painting removed unnecessary pressure connected with painting as the purpose of adding marks from life observation was to contribute to the common target of creating a painting.

To prepare for the Jubilee Fete workshop, I visited Jermyn Street regularly to paint a series of plein air paintings from observation. The series is called “Preparations on Jermyn Street”. The paintings were made in different times of the day and in different weather conditions. I wanted to find ways to paint the Union Jack in ways that, instead of representing a patriarchal and a fixed symbol of power it could be seen as something that is being constantly created and re-created by living bodies who through small acts of participation are contemporary society.