Following on from the huge success of Sketch-O-Matic back in November 2011, when 40+ artists, illustrators, poets, doodle-makers and pensmiths created instant-ish portraits of almost 1,000 sitters, I can now announce that the booth is coming back! It will be installed in the same spot, in Cornerhouse main lobby, launching for Manchester Weekender on Friday 12th October 2012 for a 10 day/night residency, until Sunday 21st October. The public are invited to sit inside the booth as if for a photograph and make a minimum donation of £1 to an artist through an anonymous slot in return for a self-portrait. But where the machinery should be is a tiny, fully equipped artist studio.
A whole bunch of last year’s stars will be making a return, from David Bailey to Hammo and Gemma Parker, but I’m also looking for new artists, no matter your style or level of ability. Help get the word out and drop me a line if you’re interested! Typical slots will be 1 hour long, although we’ll continue to offer 2 hour slots as many artists have requested them, finding the anonymity and adrenaline rush a thrill. We’d hope you would be able to do a handful of shifts across the week, to suit your own schedule.
The booth will operate from 12 noon until 10pm daily, opening until 11pm on Saturdays. Participants are free to keep the donations that arrive through the coin slot during their stint. As we can’t reimburse travel, it would make more sense to artists in the Greater Manchester region, although if you are based elsewhere in the UK you are very welcome if able to make your own arrangements.
I’ll see you (or rather, not see you), in October… so look for the queue through the building! Use the contact form on this website to get in touch, or email me via bren (at) cornerhouse (dot) org
