The Kickplate Project

a curatorial project aimed at bringing international fine art photography to communities that are not the usual target audience of art galleries

the*kickplate*project started off as a pop-up gallery in a former barber shop in Wales, and takes its name from the metal plates that sit in place as a reminder of our former gallery’s past.
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the popularity of the first exhibition we organised, “Visitors”, made us realise how much art spaces were needed and welcome in small towns.

our aim is to bring high-quality international photography to a place that doesn't have a permanent gallery, show that art is not prescribed to one social group and help promote new artists, focusing on countries whose art is often overlooked.
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for us, the*kickplate*project is a way to fight small-town boredom, to question who the target audience of art is and to broaden that audience, to bring art directly into the lives and communities of those people who have been told that art is not for them.
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our latest project, 76m2, has opened in 2 Portland Buildings, Commercial Street, Pontypool, on the 11th of February and will run until the end of 2017.

*DISCLAIMER* to avoid confusion: we have not been running or managing the gallery in Abertillery since January 2014.