House of Vans London and The Auction Collective are set to combine fine art and skate culture by holding a virtual 360° exhibition in House of Vans London’s gallery space, followed by a live fundraising auction, collectively titled ‘Objects of Art | The Skateboards’. ‘Objects of Art | The Skateboards’ comprises of 19 customised skateboards from a curated selection of established and emerging artists. Through each artist’s unique and creative touch, the skateboards have been transformed into works of fine art that will be showcased digitally in House of Vans London’s gallery space and sold in a live stream auction to raise funds for leading youth homelessness charity: Centrepoint.
With the coronavirus pandemic causing the cancellation of fundraising events this year, Centrepoint needs help now more than ever. Between January and March 2019, an estimated 24,455 young people approached their local council in England because they were homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Since the start of the pandemic, 78% of councils have seen an increase in homelessness, and Centrepoint is now seeing an increase of around 50% in calls to the Helpline from young people facing homelessness. 74% of councils now foresee an increase in homelessness in the coming months.
The exhibition and subsequent auction feature customised skateboards from an eclectic mix of artists including street artists, emerging artists and Royal Academicians. Namely, contemporary artist: Grayson Perry, graphic and interior designer: Camille Walala, LA-based street artist: Mr Brainwash, urban artist: D*Face, Royal Academician: Yinka Shonibare and up and coming painters Charley Peters and Rene Gonzalez. Young homeless people have also been designing their own skateboards to win the chance to feature in the exhibition.
Members of the public can start bidding when the virtual 360° exhibition opens on October 30; the live stream auction kicks off on November 18 to draw the exhibition to a close. For more details on the auction and to register to bid, please click here
There will also be a treasure hunt integrated into the virtual exhibition. The aim of the game is to locate a hidden image of Vans’ legend Tony Alva. House of Vans will reward ten lucky winners at random. Follow both House of Vans London (@houseofvansldn) and The Auction collective’s (@theauctioncollective) Instagram accounts to find out more.
About Centrepoint
- Centrepoint is the leading charity for homeless young people aged 16-25.
- Centrepoint operates nationally, with bases in London, Manchester, the North East and Yorkshire.
- Centrepoint supports 15,000 vulnerable young people a year by providing accommodation, teaching valuable life skills, tackling their physical and mental health issues and working with them to get them into education or employment.
- The Freephone Centrepoint Helpline is available for any young person aged 16-25 worried about homelessness. It is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. The Centrepoint Helpline number is: 0808 800 0661.
- HRH The Duke of Cambridge became Centrepoint’s Patron in 2005.
For more information, please visit www.centrepoint.org.uk.
The Auction Collective
- Founded in 2017, by former Christie’s auctioneer Tom Best, The Auction Collective run affordable auctions of emerging art
- Open to the public, people can bid in three ways through the platform: over the phone, with absentee bids, or in real time with ‘click to bid’ technology during a live stream broadcast
