Neighbourhood Gallery - launch of a new art space

OUR CAMPAIGN:

Cotton On MCR are now looking to have our own gallery-come-art space, naming this 'Neighbourhood Gallery'!

Hi, our names are Domino and Pete and we are raising money to open Neighbourhood Gallery.

Neighbourhood Gallery is to be a multi-use Art Space in Manchester, which aims to host a range of exhibitions, workshops, community groups and more!

The mission of this gallery is to provide an inclusive and supportive environment that encourages people to connect with art. We believe art can inspire, challenge, and transform individuals and communities, and we are committed to being a catalyst for positive change through art.

We are the owners of Cotton On MCR, an art events company that for the past 5 years, has been organising events in various venues across Greater Manchester. With Cotton On MCR, we organise art exhibitions, art fairs, workshops and more. We have shown hundreds of local artist's work, and run workshops in all different arts and crafts. Our aim is to connect people with their local art scene, but we have always had to work and hire other people's venues. It has been our dream for years now to have our own gallery, to do our events in our time, and have a space we can call our own!

OUR MISSION:

We want to continue and grow the work we do at Cotton On MCR, so this multi-use art space will showcase contemporary works from Manchester-based artists and beyond, opening this up to artists across the North West of England. We aim to be a place where art can thrive, so we will also offer a range of workshops, events and classes for artists and enthusiasts alike. We also want to have a little art shop onsite selling prints, jewellery and unique art gifts.

With Neighbourhood Gallery, we aim to encourage people to get involved in their local art scene, and will do this by hosting a variety of events. We will host monthly art exhibitions of different themes and mediums, giving hundreds of artists across the year a chance to show and sell their work. This region has so much artistic talent, and yet not all artists have the chance to show their work in their home city. We love nothing more than giving all artists a chance to show and sell their work, and the hope with Neighbourhood Gallery is that more exhibitions can be organised, giving more artists and more artwork a chance to be seen.

We also want to get people into, and passionate about art. That's why Neighbour Gallery is more than just a gallery, it's an art space too. With Cotton On MCR we have organised hundreds of workshops, and again, only been able to do this in other people's venues and on their terms. With our own gallery space to host these in, we can provide a huge variety of workshops, including one-off and regular classes. We aim to have regular life drawing classes, plus workshops on how to paint, sculpt and more. We also want to host art clubs, such as a fortnightly craft club. We aim to do events for artists too, such as networking events and art peer groups. These networking and peer group events will be a chance for artists to get together, meet and learn from one-another and talk about and get feedback on their work.

Not only will Neighbourhood Gallery be an exhibition and art space, but also be a space to hire. With the hope of having plenty of floor space, tables and chairs, it will be open for other groups and classes to use as they wish. Whether you’re planning your own art workshop, yoga class, or book club - anything! Neighbourhood Gallery will be available to hire, plus we can create packages that help with the promotion and ticketing of your event too.

YOUR DONATIONS:

We are raising money to get this idea up and running. The money you donate will go towards all the initial set-up costs, the cost to paint and decorate the space including shop front signage, installing a hanging system for the artwork, installing professional lighting, buying the display units for the shop and buying the furniture needed for the gallery and the workshops.

We have created some thank-you gifts for your donation. We have split this into two categories, one for Art Fans, and one for Artists. On completion of your donation, we will contact you and ask what reward you would like from us!

Art Fans:

Artists:

If you aren't able to donate money, we are also looking for arts and crafts to add to the Neighbourhood Gallery shop, including art prints, jewellery, sculptures, homewear and more. Please do get in touch if you would like to donate work that we can sell. You can contact us via the button at the bottom of the campaign.

TESTIMONIES:

Here are some lovely comments from people who have been part of our events as Cotton On MCR.

'Really appreciate having someone who champions Manchester artists in

an open inclusive way. Love your dynamism and your friendly videos and your connection with the contemporary arts in mcr.' Suzanne, Manchester artist

'I personally thought it was a great event... I had so many positive interactions and also made sales after. It was an overwhelmingly positive experience and you and your team did a fantastic job at organising it!' Betts, Manchester artist

'The workshop was really wonderful, especially for someone like me who has been fed up with papers and heavy-topic seminars. It was really fun and helped me release a lot of pressure. More workshops like this are certainly welcomed!' Yao - workshop attendee

'Just want to say we LOVED the life drawing workshop yesterday, so will be looking for some more workshops for next year. Please thank the team again!' Frankie, workshop attendee

ABOUT US:

We are Domino and Pete, a married couple who live in Urmston. We met at University where Domino studied Fine Art and Pete studied Photography. We both work, and are fully immersed in the creative industries. I, Domino, worked in an event management company for two years, then set up Cotton On MCR and have been running that business myself since 2008. I also work part-time at an arts charity that works with learning-disabled artists.

Pete is a commercial photographer and has worked in the industry ever since he graduated in 2011. He is Head Photographer at leading photographic studios, and in his spare time, he shoots the undeveloped, less-attractive scenes of Manchester.

THANK YOU:

Thank you so much for reading our campaign, we massively appreciate your time and any donations you may be able to give. We look forward to launching Neighbourhood Gallery and seeing you in the art space one day!