Aspex (life begins) at 40!

Portsmouth’s contemporary art gallery Aspex is thrilled to announce it has secured the support of Arts Council England for a series of new commissions and projects planned to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The programme will enable the gallery to continue to deliver art and participatory activities online and locally through these ongoing uncertain times, along with support for the wider cultural ecology with £53,000 of the total £84,422 grant to provide artists and creative freelancers with essential paid opportunities.

Aspex (life begins) at 40 will include four new digital art commissions, to be premiered on the gallery’s new website this Spring/Summer. They will provide an insight into the gallery’s archive and work over the last four decades, together with digital resources for families. The grant from Arts Council England will also provide the financial support needed to Bring Back the Southsea Dinosaur! The long-awaited tribute to Luna Park by Heather and Ivan Morison will be realised this summer - following the successful crowdfunding campaign in 2020, when 147 supporters and Portsmouth City Council raised over £10,000 to kickstart the fundraising for a bronze and augmented reality version of the much loved dinosaur.

Aspex will launch its 40th anniversary exhibition programme with In Search of Chemoza an immersive multi-screen video work and documentary by artist duo boredomresearch. The artists previously presented Theatre of restless automata at Aspex in 2005, and have been invited back to present their new commission following on from a residency developing the work in 2018/19. Dates for the opening of the exhibition will be announced as soon as possible.