House of Vans X The Auction Collective: Objects of Art | The Skateboards

posted by Robyn Pitts November 3, 2020

House of Vans London and The Auction Collective are combining fine art and skate culture by holding a virtual 360° exhibition in House of Vans London’s gallery space, as well as a live fundraising auction for homelessness charity, Centrepoint. Objects of Art | The Skateboards comprises of 19 customised skateboards from a curated selection of established and emerging artists. The virtual exhibition is open now, and the live stream auction kicks off on November 18 to draw the exhibition to a close.

The exhibition and subsequent auction features customised skateboards from an eclectic mix of artists including street artists, emerging artists and Royal Academicians. Artists include; Grayson Perry, Magnus Gjoen, D Face, Yinka Shonibare, Bambi, Daniel Cordas, Nathan Bowen, Charley Peters, Mr Brainwash, Dave Buonaguidi, Trust Icon, Olly Fathers, Rene Gonzalez, Camille Walala, Otto Schade and Pure Evil. Young homeless people have also been designing their own skateboards to win the chance to feature in the exhibition. As part of the exhibition there will also be an integrated treasure hunt, with the aim of the game to locate a hidden image of Vans’ legend Tony Alva. House of Vans will reward ten lucky winners at random.

With the coronavirus pandemic causing the cancellation of fundraising events this year, Centrepoint needs help now more than ever. Between January and March 2019, an estimated 24,455 young people approached their local council in England because they were homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Since the start of the pandemic, 78% of councils have seen an increase in homelessness, and Centrepoint is now seeing an increase of around 50% in calls to the Helpline from young people facing homelessness. 74% of councils now foresee an increase in homelessness in the coming months.

“It’s a privilege to be among these amazing contemporary artists for this project. I’m thrilled to work with Centrepoint, the Auction Collective and House of Vans, all for different yet equally great reasons. As an artist, it’s amazing to have the opportunity to be part of a cause that’s so easy to believe in. Painting on a skateboard was a uniquely satisfying surface to work on and I’m very fond of the result it created. The tone of the wood was a beautiful background, which is why I left so much of it untouched or with a thin layer of paint so you can see through to the texture of the skateboard.” Rene Gonzalez, Contemporary Artist.