image: Members of Art In Motion outside Arnolfini July 2022 by Johnny Morgan Photography for Arnolfini
AIM (Art in Motion) is a participatory arts organisation based in Bristol that provides opportunities for artists with learning disabilities. AIM works with its artists to support them to develop their practice and find ways to engage with contemporary art.
Since AIM began in 2015, they have worked closely with Arnolfini to create projects that both support it’s artist’s practices and celebrate and champion art made by disabled people.
Over the last two years AIM and Arnolfini’s partnership has strengthened through greater collaborations and the regular presence of AIM artists at Arnolfini where they have enjoyed engaging with visitors and sharing their work.
This culminated on 2 July 2022 when AIM and Arnolfini were part of We Are Invisible We Are Visible, the largest exhibition of art by disabled artists in the UK.
This exhibition charts AIM’s work since the pandemic began, showing how they emerged from the isolation of lockdown into a creative force in the city and a source of support and pride for Bristol’s disabled community.
Special thanks to:
Jesse Cooper, Bristol City Council, Arts Council England, Spike Island, We the Curious, Stroud Valley Arts Space (SVA, No Bindings, WAIWAV, DASH, West of England Visual Arts Alliance (WEVAA), Props and Johnny Morgan Photography.
AIM artists: Betty Sargent, Dave Pearse, Chris Rose, Jonathan Barr Lindsey, Louise Morgan, Beth Richards, Katy Tovey, Rob Smith, Alisha Serratore, Helen Grant, Maisie Fortune, Colin Higginson
We Are Invisible We Are Visible
AIM received a We Are Invisible We Are Visible (WAIWAV) commission from DASH, a disabled-led visual arts charity.
In the spirit of Dada, AIM developed Everything and Nothing as a series of nonsensical happenings and fuzzy protests, they created elaborate costumes and placards that melded the artists own interests with Dadaist sensibilities. This took place at Arnolfini on 2 July 2022, coinciding with interventions made by 30 other disabled artists in galleries across the country to mark the 102nd anniversary of the 1st Dada international exhibition in Berlin.
WAIWAV marked the largest ever exhibition of work by disabled artists in the UK.
