When the Clapping Ends, the Caring Continues
A creative community claps
Ian Berry has formed a collective of over 20 international artists who all made their Clapping Hands to show their gratitude to health workers and others in this period.
Ian has seen his hands projected all over the world after making two hands in denim with his son.
For the last two months his hands have been projected on buildings as far away as Colombia, Mexico City, New York, Sweden and Brazil and here in the UK on 70 different areas walls from Land’s End to John O’Groats, the most Southern and Northern areas of Britain. They were seen on places such as the Baltic in Gateshead, Edinburgh Castle, the South Bank Centre and the BT Tower in Birmingham – it was even on the white Cliffs of Dover!
They can now be seen with more artists hands including his sons, only six, who inspired the whole project. Elliott loved the clapping here in the UK on Thursday nights at 8pm. ‘It enabled us to be able to talk to him about it while he was engaged and interested. We could tell him about his auntie who was on the Covid team in Lund, Sweden and our friends on the frontline. He now sees the NHS workers as heroes and gets excited every time he sees the logo. That’s why I think the clapping is great, while I understand the arguments if kids can grow up seeing health workers and others to be respected then we have more hope for the future.’
Elliotts hand clap
Ian managed to get his projections to Land’s End prior to the last clap on the tenth week after the ‘creator’ of the clapping Annemarie Plas called for it to end. ‘I can imagine the pressure she was under when It got political’ Ian said. The night before Ian was also at a projection himself in Greenwich, ‘We thought fitting as time was running out just as momentum had really started’.
Ian was starting to get back into the studio for his museum shows later in the year when a call came in, the clapping was back! For Sunday the NHS celebrates its 72nd year and have asked for a clap not just for them, but all on the front line. This was actually Ian’s angle all along, and this projection on the Angel of the North shows many of the answers to who do you clap for. Ian used the hashtag #iclapfor
‘All the opportunities that had faded suddenly came back, and then more. A lot came in and led nowhere, no one sees all the time put in, but this week should see a lot of different projections and events! My phone has never been used as much’
One that is a great development is that Ian isn’t alone, he had many artists submit their hands, traditionally one of the hardest body parts to make. ‘I’ve avoided them for years!’ Said Ian. No one wants to clap alone, and nor did Ian. The isolation was bad enough for him, and now feels a part of a wider community with artists like Dutch artist Max Zorn who sent in his hands with brown packing tape, Daisy Collingridge’s amazing creatures hands, Andre Veloux who makes his work with Lego and Kirstie Adamson who makes collages out of magazines.
Jess Wilsons Hans clap in Newcastle
There were some really successful artists join with more traditional materials like Benjamin Murphy, Will Rochfort, Ruth Fox and Saatchi’s “Top 20 artists to watch in 2020” Marcus Aitken. Illustrator Jess Wilson of Jealous Gallery made a bold one with a yellow emoji hand that is striking when projected.
With Ian being a unconventional textile artist, he got many submit with textiles like Sophie Standing, Alice Kozlow, Cas Holmes, Terry Aske, Béatrice Beraud, Barbara Shaw, Rachadi Zahira, Clockwork Press, and Juan Manaul Gomez and of course little Elliott who also got an added treat, a trip to the top of the Shard with his dad and be the only ones there!
In the final week culminating in the NHS birthday it was shown in various sites in London, Huddersfield, Newcastle, Halifax, Shrewsbury. In Halifax it was at Yorkshire’s ‘Number One building’ The Piece Hall, for the artist from neighbouring Huddersfield. Ian famed for using denim jeans in his art and it will be shown in the region’s iconic old cloth Hall. They made a film of it with videos of people saying who they clap for which Ian has been asking in this period.
The angel of the North’s projected final message
‘By asking the question who do you clap for?, it made it personal, but also as well as getting friends and relatives answers, we got certain groups of people like prison officers, unpaid care workers and volunteers - many who had felt forgotten. We projected their names and I know there were many happy to be included when they saw it.’ Ian added.
It all started by accident, Ian’s son Elliott loved the clapping and it gave Ian the opportunity to tell him what was going on and who it was for – and to talk about their family and friends on the front line while he was engaged. He now sees the NHS workers as heroes and gets excited every time he sees the logo. Elliott took the photo of his dad’s hands and sat with him while he made it in his studio.
He was certainly excited to see a mural made of it in Walthamstow, North London. He even painted a part of it with Wood Street Wallsand Atma. The painting of the now iconic clap was on the side of a Doctor’s Surgery and was liked by the neighbours. At 5pm on the Sunday of the NHS birthday Ian and ATMA clapped with the residents of the street at 5pm.
‘I know by the tenth week the clap had its detractors and I understand the arguments. But I have seen children engaged in this and let’s hope they grow up to respect the Heath Service, it’s that well used phrase, they are the future. We live in a country that made the court jesters kings and I think many are starting to see who we should value. And (laughing) I’m aware of the list that placed Artists on the least valued workers in this period.’
the pins of Pin Your Thanks on the Royal Festival Hall, South Bank, London
His son now proudly wears the Clapping Hands as a badge. Ian was one of the names behind Pin Your Thanks that also includes Kiera Knightley, Ringo Starr, Anoushka Shankar, Rita Ora, David James and Joe Lycett as a way of showing thanks to those in this time. They are raising money for NHS Charities Direct and Volunteering Matters and backed by the likes of Stephen Fry, Emma Thompson and Oscar winning Costume Designer Jenny Beavan. And it was all launched by.. you guessed it, a projection, and at London’s Royal Festival Hall on the South Bank.
Ian’s no longer known by just art in denim, perhaps projections are his new medium.
But as Ian says. ‘When the clapping ends, the caring continues.’
The dedicated Iclap website
News
News from the studio of Ian Berry
NEW!
Ian Berry’s, SPLENDID ISOLATION is out now and available to order online. The book is a collaboration with publisher Jap Sam Books in The Netherlands with the Museum Rijswijk to coincide with the Solo Museum show of the same name.
The book includes
· a foreward by Museum Rijswijk curator Diana Wind and Director Arnoud van Aalst
· 160 page paperback book
· Over 150 images in full colour (well, full of blue)
· Looks over some of his 15 years of making his artwork using only denim
· Many images show detail shots of his work that have to be seen to be believed.
The book was launched at the 2020 Virtual Art Book Fair (VABF) organized by Tokyo Art Book Fair (TABF) with Jap Sam. The fair was originally scheduled for Fall 2020 at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo. It then debuted at the Museum shop at Museum Rijswijk and was popular with visitors. You can now get it here.
The book comes signed by the artist Ian Berry and you can also request a message to be sent. We can post around the world with the postages below, including a special launch offer.
Postage
· £2.50 to the UK (Free with FREESHIPPING code at check out)
Postage outside the UK will come up at Check out.
Along with Museum Rijswijk and Jap Sam Books the book was made possible by the museum show principle sponsor Pepe Jeans London, along with Tencel, Famore Cutlery, Cone Denim and Tonello.