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Artists Alf Linney, Graham Thomas, Virginia Jackson and John Bartlett. |
Artists seek new home from home
ISLINGTON'S oldest arts organisation is once again holding its summer exhibition outside the borough amid concerns over a lack of suitable venues closer to home.
The two week exhibition by Islington Art Society, formed 69 years ago in 1941, opens today (Friday) at Hornsey public library in Crouch End.
The society held its annual exhibitions at Islington Central Library in Holloway Road up until four years ago, when the rooms were no longer available. “Islington Central library made it quite clear that they preferred private functions rather than our exhibitions,” said society chairman Alf Linney. “Presumably they can make more money from one-off events. All I know is that whenever we’ve applied to hire the upstairs hall at the Central library it is not available. In the end we have had to go out of the borough, which is a bit mad considering the majority of our artists live in Islington.”
For the past four years the exhibition has been held at Stoke Newington public library in Hackney, but that venue was not available this year due to rewiring work.
The society investigated holding the event at the Candid Art Centre at the Angel and Union Chapel, but both venues were too expensive.
Lib Dem Cllr Ruth Polling, the council’s Executive member for Libraries, said she was disappointed the society were not holding their event in the borough. “It’s possible the library were not given sufficient notice of the event,” she added. “I shall look into it.”
The society has more than 50 works on display, including sculptures.
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