Face Mask / FIGA 11

Image: Georgie Hopton

Face Mask

FIG has invited some of the world’s leading fashion illustrators and contemporary fine artists to make an artwork from a handmade, calico face mask, designed by contemporary fashion label Colville.

All proceeds from the auction of these works will go straight to the UK registered charity Hope and Homes for Children.

The artists have used this potent emblem of our time to explore the possible meanings of our mass adoption of these masks, as a means of personal protection, decoration and social distancing, whilst mirroring the extraordinary times we are living through.

All the proceeds of the sale of these unique art works will be donated to Hope and Homes for Children an organisation whose mission is to end the institutionalisation of children in orphanages and place them in the care of loving families.

Face Mask / FIGA 11

Fiona Banner aka The Vanity Press
Jacky Blue
John Booth
Will Broome
Cecilia Carlstedt
Jean-Philippe Delhomme
Jeremy Deller
Godfried Donkor
David Downton
Luke Edward Hall
Georgie Hopton
Gary Hume
Cary Kwok
Jordi Labanda
Peter Liversidge
Tanya Ling
Marko Matysik
Alastair Mackinven
Sam McEwen
Toby Mott
Tim Noble
Sarah Staton
Gavin Turk
Daisy de Villeneuve
Mark Wallinger
James White
Wilfrid Wood
Christina Zimpel

The auction of the artworks will go live on Friday 12th June at 12pm and conclude on Sunday 21st June from 4pm. Each lot end time is staggered.

Starting bids for all lots: £100.00

Colville: “Community and artistic collaboration are at the core of Colville’s brand ethos. We are so delighted to be partnering with Fashion Illustration Gallery, and bringing together the creative encounters between the eclectic minds of a group of such dynamic artists for a common purpose. In this challenging moment in time, we wanted to celebrate the stoicism and bravery of individuals, as well as a collective mass effort. The artworks created will not only have the power to inspire, but are also symbolic of our time and place in history. During times of hardship, it is easy to forget the many in need, especially children who are the most vulnerable and the casualties of this time. Supporting Hope and Homes for Children was only natural. The charity is the true leader in protecting the welfare and wellbeing of children.”

Mark Waddington, Hope and Homes for Children CEO: “Now, more than ever, every child needs to feel safe and loved at home with their family. Covid-19 threatens the world’s most vulnerable families, placing children at urgent risk of losing their loving homes and entire childhoods to the neglect and abuse of an orphanage. Hope and Homes for Children works for a world where every child grows up in a loving family and never in an orphanage. Our staff are on the frontline, supporting children and protecting families and communities around the world from the impact of Coronavirus, with essential medicines, provisions and counselling. This brilliant auction will save lives and keep families together. Our huge thanks to the artists, Colville and Fashion Illustration Gallery.”

William Ling, FIG Founder: “The project is unique in that the work of fashion illustrators is usually kept apart from the work of hard core contemporary fine artists. When we first had the idea of inviting the likes of Georgie Hopton and Mark Wallinger to participate alongside Jordi Labanda and Jacky Blue we had no idea what the response would be. That our invitation has been welcomed is not only a measure of the generosity of the individual artists and the great work that Hope and Homes for Children is doing but also, we think, that these two worlds share something of a patron saint in Andy Warhol.”

With special thanks to Maria Londono who made the masks, The Cloth Shop for the donation of fabric and Pete Navey who photographed the art works.

About Colville

Colville is a collective of designers, established in 2018 by former Marni design director Molly Molloy and former fashion director of British Vogue Lucinda Chambers with a network of regular collaborators and project partners. The brand reflects the designers’ very personal points of view, and the resulting collections are bold and fearless, as well as romantic and modern. Colville is a contemporary brand with a passion for innovation, and the unexpected – it is an emotional response to designing clothes that have individuality and longevity, the antithesis of fast fashion.

About Hopes and Homes for Children

Hope and Homes for Children are leading a global movement to end orphanages for good, with the mission to eradicate the preconceived notion that orphanages are a place of protection and shelter, and to shed light on the disturbing reality of its violent and abusive environment, Hope and Homes for Children are the catalysts for reuniting children with their loved ones and building new families.

Orphanages do not protect children. They harm them. Around the world over eight million children are confined to them because of poverty, discrimination or disability. 80% of children confined to orphanages today are not orphans. They have at least one living parent and could be growing up with their own family. And for those who can’t, an alternative family-based solution is always possible. Many as 37 out of every 100 children living in orphanages may suffer violence or abuse. Orphanages can be deadly, with mortality rates sometimes as high as 80 per cent. Those who survive can be 10 times more likely to enter prostitution; 40 times more likely to get a criminal record; and 500 times more likely to commit suicide.

Hope and Homes for Children work to keep families together, reunite families, build new families and drive the global reform that can see the elimination of all orphanages worldwide in our lifetime.

Always family, Never Orphanages.