News Release MK Gallery Project Space Exhibition

The Making of Cave, a new public artwork for Milton Keynes

5–29 April 2012

Preview: 19 April, 6–8pm Refreshments. All welcome.

This April, MK Gallery’s Project Space presents The making of Cave, a new public art work for Milton Keynes. The exhibition comprises a selection of background material relating to the production of Ivan & Heather Morison’s Cave (2011), a major new commission and permanent public artwork that was unveiled in Campbell Park last autumn.

Offering insight into the planning and design of this large concrete sculpture, the exhibition comprises a selection of drawings, photographs and objects, including the artists’ original model, the wooden prototype from which Cave’s iron bench was cast, a selection of installation images, and a new film made in collaboration with the artists showing the sculpture in Campbell Park.

During the run of the exhibition, it will be augmented by a selection of artwork made in response to Cave by children and families who attend MK Gallery’s free, regular, Start the Art and Mini Maker creative workshops.

Cave was commissioned by MK Gallery in collaboration with The Parks Trust as part of the Campbell Park Public Art Plan. It is open to visitors to Campbell Park all year. The project was made possible with the generous additional support of a range of national and local companies, including Andrew Howard and Partners, Bardon Concrete, Trendrevel Services Ltd., Camfaud Concrete Pumps Ltd., Hargreaves Foundry Ltd., David Lock Associates and Keens Shay Keens MK.

of 3 Notes to Editors

Heather and Ivan Morison Internationally acclaimed artists Heather and Ivan Morison work collaboratively and often investigate the psychology of place and the tensions between modern and rural life. Heather Peak (born in Desborough in 1973) and Ivan Morison (born in Istanbul, Turkey in 1974) have exhibited nationally and internationally with recent site-specific projects in Vancouver, Tasmania, Seattle and The Netherlands. The artists represented Wales at the 52nd Venice Biennale of Art in 2007. They live and work in Brighton and Arthog, North West Wales. www.morison.info.

‘Cave’ Comprising three large concrete slabs which appear to have fallen together to form a rudimentary shelter, Cave, was cast onsite from black-pigmented concrete and its surfaces bear the marks of the burnt timber shuttering used to form the structure. Inside, an iron stool cast from timber sits beside a blackened circular depression in the concrete, and firewood is left stacked in the back corner. The secluded spot in Campbell Park where Cave is located offers expansive views of the surrounding Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire countryside.

Events for Children and Families Throughout April MK Gallery’s children and family events are inspired by Cave. For full listings information visit www.mkgallery.org/events/childrenandfamilies.

Start The Art Tuesdays 11am – 12noon / Free / Suitable for Parents and Toddlers 3, 10, 17 & 24 April Includes re-enacting the story We’re All Going on a Bear Hunt by author Michael Rosen to discover the Cave in Campbell Park; making your own natural habitats such as dens, caves, nests and burrows in imitation of land animals; and following in the footsteps of author Julia Donaldson’s Cave Baby to create amazing wall drawings and cave art.

Mini Makers Saturdays 1 – 3pm / Free / Suitable for children 4+ and their families 7, 14, 21 & 28 April Sessions include activities such as collective story-telling through mark-making in a cave tent, Dhol drumming sessions in the open air and large-scale cave drawing with a modern twist.

The Parks Trust The Parks Trust is a charity that manages around 4,500 acres of Milton Keynes’ parks an d green spaces. Caromg for river valleys; woodlands; lakes and ponds; parks; landscaped roadside areas and the wildlife that depends upon them. This includes some large areas of the Ouse and Ouzel Valleys; the balancing lakes at Willen, Furzton and Caldecotte, Ca mpbell Park, around fifty pony paddocks, over two hundred ponds and seven hundred acr es of agricultural land which are mainly grazed with the Trust’s own sheep and cattle. www.theparkstrust.com MK Gallery MK Gallery, located in Theatre District, central Milton Keynes, is one of the UK’s leading public galleries, presenting a programme of international contemporary visual art. 900 Midsummer Boulevard, Central Milton Keynes, MK9 3QA. Admission free. Open Tuesday – Friday 12–8pm, Saturday 11am–8pm, Sunday 11am–5pm. www.mkgallery.org

of 3 MK Gallery Project Space MK Gallery's Project Space, is available to the MK Community for monthly exhibitions of contemporary visual art by individuals or groups based in Milton Keynes.

Cave Project Supporters Andrew Howard and Partners, Bardon Concrete, Trendrevel Services Ltd., Camfaud Concrete Pumps Ltd., Hargreaves Foundry Ltd., David Lock Associates and Keens Shay Keens MK.

MK Gallery Supporters MK Gallery receives core funding from Milton Keynes Council and Arts Council England South East.

Further information For press interviews, information or images please contact: Katharine Sorensen, Communications Director, MK Gallery. T: +44 (0)1908 558318 / E: [email protected]

Ends. Date of issue: 30 March 2012