AN EXHIBITION of riot murals, dramatic canvasses and edgy conceptual street art has gone on show in West Ealing.
Trouble in Utopia at the Open gallery is free and attracted around 300 people on its opening night on November 4.
Attendees were able to view an eery collection of interactive conceptual pieces, from the broken-up radio transmissions between American apaches in Afghanistan at the entrance to the old-fashioned TV tucked in the corner playing the most eye-opening of Ealing's riot videos, a tacky mug of tea spilt carelessly beside.
Exhibition organiser and artist Jack Jones said: "A real mix of people came down and they seemed to enjoy it. It's all about getting the community interested in art and making their own art."
The third exhibition in a series called Hard Times, Trouble in Utopia's theme is to focus on the problems between old and new that arise in modern urban life, based on the contradiction of Utopia itself, originating from the almost identical greek words Ou-topos (no place) and Eu-topos (good place). The artworks themselves play with common use language, signs, and icons of mass production.
"Almost all the pieces here are done by young people, many from the immediate area and some from the rest of London. It's a mixture of professional artists, art students and local people - it's about making it fun, playing with art and what art can be."
The Open Ealing gallery is a project led by West Ealing Arts which aims to bring refreshing cultural space and exciting arts programmes to people in the borough. Making use of the five-storey building at 113 Uxbridge Road, Ealing, it is a rare community-funded initiative that brings local artists, performers, arts groups and residents together, promoting various projects and offering both exhibitions and classes to locals.
"It's hard to crack the suburban shell - we know people are busy, most people get straight on the train into work and don't think about art at all in a day. But art can be really fun - we believe you can do anything you want, All you need is an idea in your head and some material."
Another artist with works up at the gallery, Alex Tracy, says art can be as simple as making the most of objects around you. "I worked in a coffee shop and just decided to try some stuff out with the sachets." He shows me tens of the Starbucks sugar packets with intricate acryllic paintings fitted delicately around the printing on the front, snippets of the beauty of personal design set against an otherwise mass-produced world.
Multiple exhibitions of different types of art run year-round at the Open building. Those interested can look for inspiration from their quirky, inventive pieces and learn techniques of their own at the regular workshops and evening classes.
Whether intrigued observer or aspiring Banksy, the West Ealing project provides a free access pass to the ground roots of modern art.
