Tracey Meek – [Isolation] Art Mail – QUAD Extra Gallery Spaces

Originally, Isolation Art Mail was a lockdown project facilitated by artist Tracey Meek. The project was a way of collectively sharing experiences through art, offering comfort in difficult times. Similar to a chain letter, the participants received the beginnings of an art piece, some art materials, creative prompts, and various random junk. They were invited to add/respond to the work, and to each other, before sending it on to other recipients. The art mail would then make its way from person to person, eventually returning to Tracey for exhibition. With over 100 UK and international participants, there was a lot of love shared between strangers.

Tracey used the Corridors Commission as an opportunity to bring the art mail out of hiding, giving it the recognition it so deserved, carefully unwrapping and collating the work for exhibition felt somewhat like closure for a time that never really made sense. Alongside the curated art mail, Tracey has created new works in response to the letters, mixed media tactile sculptures that invite audiences to look and touch, and present a final word on the rules and regulations that we all faced during lockdown. This series of new and old works draws a celebratory conclusion to the project, culminating in its final iteration [Isolation] Art Mail.