21 January 2021

Two of Bristol’s creative agencies and a host of some of the biggest names in illustration, graffiti and design have raised over £7,000 each for Above & Beyond and Mind through Life On Hold, a creative arts community.

Life on Hold, launched by Duchess Media and Hey! What?, is a fundraising project which encouraged designers, illustrators and artists, both professional and amateur to get involved, creating pieces of art based around the slower pace of life we’ve all had to adjust to throughout the pandemic.

The project saw a range of well-known and up and coming artists from Bristol and beyond create a selection of original pieces around the theme of ‘Life On Hold’, including world-famous graffiti artists such as Inkie, Mr Jago, and Feek and illustrators and artists such as Miss Led, Holy Moly and many more. Other creatives were then able to ‘remix’ the original pieces, taking elements from the original creations to produce their own pieces of work.

After hundreds of submissions, Life On Hold launched an online shop, selling prints of the artwork which raised over £7,000 for Bristol's hospitals.

Speaking about the project, founder Hamish McWhirter said:

We were so overwhelmed with the response we received from Life On Hold. It was an ambitious project to take on but the amount we have raised has made all the effort worth while. We can’t thank the key artists who got involved enough as well as all the people who took part in the remix project and everyone who supported the campaign as a whole.

Initial plans for the project were that it would culminate in an exhibition in January, where the original pieces would be exhibited and auctioned, but the latest lockdown rules have postponed this. When the auction and exhibition can take place all of the original pieces will be available for purchase with all profits raised going directly to both charities.

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