The Object Project: at home with art in Everton

The Object Project : At Home with Art in Everton began in February 2013 with collaborating artists Lin Holland & Jane Poulton working with households from the West Everton Community Council (WECC) on a long-term participatory research project. The aim of the project was to build a dialogue between artists and residents wherein they collectively explored how objects become meaningful in the lives of their owners and, concurrently, whether contemporary art objects might have a role in domestic spaces. Central to the project was the understanding that, in order for this dialogue to be mutually meaningful, the artists would employ their usual methods of working within the critical discourses of contemporary art. The project began with Holland & Poulton visiting each household where participants shared with them a significant object, revealing how and why it had accrued its meaning. The intimate setting of the home as the space for these conversations encouraged trusting relationships to be built from the beginning. This produced a distinctive aspect to the project and led to its deeper social impact upon all those involved. In response to these conversations and treasured objects, the artists made a new artwork for each participant, which responded to the domestic context and visual environment of the object, its history and lineage, and to the wider family and social relations associated with it. These site-specific works were made with materials and processes that included, amongst others: bronze, steel, stone, porcelain, film, photography, fabric and a sung performance. This rich diversity reflected the individuality of each participant and their distinctive object. The installation of the artworks in participants' homes during March 2014 provided platforms for discussion around the concept, process, and resolution of each site-specific piece. The project had many social moments with group gallery visits, sculpture workshops and several reflective and celebratory gatherings. A community within the community was formed that established new friendships and rekindled others through a collective and personally meaningful engagement with contemporary art.