AD/DRESSING THE CITY - MOF TAKE OVER
It’s Halloween in May at THE Garnet Stores this month AS Our very own, Hope, takeS over the windows AS PART OF THE Norfolk & Norwich Festival…
With other Norwich staples such as Thorns, Rainbow and Jarrolds as part of the AD/DRESSING THE CITY project, NNFest have commissioned ten Norfolk-based artists to each create a window display for a Norwich city centre independent business. And in an ever serendipitous moment we were paired with our very own local artist in the Garnet team, Hope aka Mother of Fools.
Painted directly on Garnet Stores, Hope’s window is telling the forgotten stories of old. Their concept is to offer a nod to the spectres, myths and folklore that surrounds Norwich and Norfolk. If you look carefully you’ll see King Gurgunt, Lantern Men patrolling the Norwich Market, a shadowy Black Shuck and other wonderful inhabitants… But don’t stare too long or you might just hear the footsteps of Father Ignatius behind you, before cursing you to eternal damnation!
Here’s what Hope had to say about their work…
“I'm an illustrator and print maker based here in Norwich. The name comes from the proverb “hope is the mother of all fools”, a name that suitably conjoins the whimsy and folkish of my work. Mother of Fools (MOF) hosts my original one-off paintings and other screen-prints or hand-painted things. They are playful and styled after folk art and the occult. (And most likely red, white and black... sometimes grey!)
My work often features animals, spooks crying, hearts bleeding and unruly plant life. I'm inspired by religious iconography, folk art and folklore. I identify as gender fluid and my characters are not human themselves, nor do they present any gender. They are sex positive beings that inhabit the shadowy playground of MOF. Think Nosferatu meets Tilda Swinton meets a modern day dandy at a fetish night in Berlin!”
You can follow Hope’s work on Instagram @motheroffools and visit their etsy
AD/DRESSING THE CITY is a collaboration between two groups: local business owners that make up Norwich’s unique and characterful city centre and local artists who make Norwich’s arts scene so dynamic and varied. Both small business owners and freelance artists have been hard hit by COVID-19 and the project intends to facilitate working relationships between these two groups.
So… Why not take a walk around Norwich City centre and see some incredible work from local artists.