Sweeet exhibition opening speech
03/08/2011
I am very pleased to be here today because while I often get asked to speak at events, I’m usually speaking about politics or something similar. It’s not that often that I get to speak about art, which is one of my other true passions.
I have been involved in the arts since I was a child and have loved every minute of it. I’m still involved in the arts world through playwrighting, and I think I will never stop being an artist at heart because I believe it has great power.
No matter whether the art takes the form of a play, a photograph, a sculpture, drawing or painting it still allows people to express themselves and communicate with others.
Art is a great leveller, it can draw outsiders into our world and give them the tools to understand how we live or how we think in a much deeper way than if we just tried to describe something to them. For people with disabilities or mental illness this is especially powerful, because it can often be frustrating trying to get people to look beyond the stereotypical way of perceiving us. Through my art I have been able to show people many things, not just about me, but also about themselves.
This process of communication is also valuable as a shared experience. When you participate in something artistic with other people it can be far more valuable than many other group activities, because it always has at its heart an element of personal expression.
The worth of a shared experience cannot be overestimated. Once you have performed or worked with or around someone in an artistic medium you have a connection to them. It might be a frustrated or troubled connection, or a deeply pleasant one – but it is something which can’t be denied. Art ties people together and refuses to let them go.
Because of the experiential nature of art we know that the wonderful works we are about to inspect today all tell a story. It might not be a conscious story, and it might not be a true story – but there will be something in each work which reveals to us a snippet of information about the artist.
So, I’d like to thank the artists here today for sharing themselves with us and proudly declare this exhibition open.
