Members of Greater Manchester’s creative community are being invited to take part in a new exhibition to showcase their talents, Manchester and Salford Illustrated. MASI will run for two weeks from 27 October and feature work by around 30 commercial artists and professional illustrators, responding to the brief ‘What does Manchester mean to you?’
The free-to-enter exhibition has been organised by local creative professionals working together as [Wood Street’s Creative Friends](http://(www.friendsofwoodst.com), to raise awareness and funds for long-standing family support charity Wood Street Mission. It will enable commercial illustrators from Manchester and Salford to exhibit their work to their peers, creative agencies and members of the public, and share their personal viewpoint of their city.
Illustrators working for agencies or studios, in-house or freelance are being invited to take part, by submitting an A3-sized image which can easily be digitally reproduced, a brief rationale and a link to their online portfolio (see Notes for further entry details). Around 30 of the best will be featured in the MASI exhibition and an online gallery, and will be reproduced as limited edition signed prints - as well as on postcards and other merchandise - to be sold at the event and online.
Organiser Stephen Hey, of Wood Street’s Creative Friends, said: “We want to make as many people as possible aware of the immense commercial illustration talent we have here in Manchester and Salford; and open up new perspectives on both cities by showing interpretations by some of their most creative people.
“The exhibition is already attracting a lot of interest from both the public and the creative sector, and we’re planning public workshops and networking events for exhibitors and the creative industries. With prints and postcards for sale visitors will be able to purchase a unique piece of art that won’t cost a fortune, and every penny raised will directly help local children living in poverty.”
The exhibition will also feature a competition for student illustrators, who are invited to respond to the same brief. Their entries will be judged by a panel including Manchester graphic design pioneer Trevor Johnson and illustrators Stanley Chow and Si Scott, and the winning student entry will also be reproduced as a print and featured in the exhibition.
All exhibitors will be invited to a launch event, alongside members of the creative industries and journalists, on 27 October, with the exhibition opening to the public the following day. Other events are planned, including a family workshop where illustrators will share their approach and skills with local children.
The exhibition follows the Wood Street’s Creative Friends’ inaugural exhibition Life in a Day in 2010, which featured sponsored photographs of a typical day at Wood Street Mission by acclaimed Manchester photographer Andrew Brooks.
The group is still seeking partners for the MASI exhibition, especially those with a commercial interest in Manchester and Salford’s creative communities. Interested organisations should contact info@manchesterandsalfordillustrated.co.uk.
