Sky Arts follows controversial satirical artist Cold War Steve as he takes his art to the masses

This Autumn, art has been making a bold escape from the confines of white box galleries as acclaimed artist Cold War Steve is embarking on a UK wide, outdoor art installation. The project, now underway, is one of the first large-scale art installations since lockdown and the journey is being followed for a unique original documentary film coming to Sky Arts in November 2020, entitled Cold War Steve Meets the Outside World.

Birmingham-based artist, Cold War Steve’s satirical collages have made him a cult phenomenon, particularly on social media, but he is also highly regarded in the art world, being celebrated as the ‘Brexit Bruegel’ and ‘a modern day Hogarth’. This subversive new voice in the art world has been taking a provocative look at the state of art, politics, and the true psyche of post-lockdown Britain through his work, literally bringing it to the masses with a number of large-scale exhibitions in the real world.

These attention grabbing exhibits have been sparking conversations across the country; from a giant windbreak on Boscombe Beach that was partly covered by the local council due to its dystopian take on the world, to a colossal jigsaw in Liverpool entitled ‘Trumpscape’. Cold War Steve’s exhibition has already made a statement in Medway, Bournemouth and Liverpool and his story continues as his work is set to arrive in Coventry next weekend.

On the project, he says: “Despite my apprehension, this is the logical next stage of my nascent career as an artist, a stage that I am very excited about. No matter how detailed or expansive I make my work, I have to accept that it will only ever be viewed on nothing bigger than a phone screen. I am thrilled therefore that the whole thing will be captured for posterity for Sky Arts – which like my exhibits, is now free to view.”

The story of the exhibition will be told in the form of a Sky Arts feature documentary (1x90 minutes); a road movie that follows Cold War Steve travelling across the country in a mobile home as he supervises the building and erection of the pieces in each of the different sites, taking art out of the galleries and bringing it to the people.

Head of Sky Arts, Phil Edgar-Jones, says: “It’s in interesting time to be a satirist in the UK - there’s a lot going on for a wicked artistic eye to take in, so we are fascinated to follow the unique talents of Cold War Steve as he takes his world of the weird from the twittersphere and into the real world. This unvarnished documentary promises to be a satire on satire itself as he faces a welcome in some places and banishment from others and we can’t wait to see how the story unfolds.”

Cold War Steve devised the project with acclaimed filmmaker Kieran Evans, whose work spans feature films, documentaries, music videos, and experimental films. In 2014, Evans was awarded the BAFTA for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer for his feature film Kelly + Victor.

As we take this journey with Cold War Steve we will see a snapshot of the post lockdown UK and get an insight in to how he sees this strange new world. We’ll learn about where he draws his inspiration from, what makes him want to create his artwork and his insight into how his work has struck a nerve with so many people. We’ll also meet fans, including recognisable faces such as Stephen Fry, and members of the public to get their perspective on his art.

Sky Arts is available for everyone to watch on Freeview Channel 11 and Freesat channel 147.

For more information please contact:

calum.mcgarry@premiercomms.com

About Sky Arts:

As the UK’s only dedicated arts channel, Sky Arts exists to bring more art to more people across the UK. By throwing open the doors to make the channel free to air, we want to increase access to and participation in the arts. Offering something for everyone, whatever their passion, Sky Arts showcases the best of classical and popular music, theatre, opera, dance and the visual arts, as well as original drama and comedy.

About Sky

With 24 million customers across six countries, Sky is Europe’s leading media and entertainment company and is proud to be part of the Comcast group. Our 32,000 employees help connect our customers to the very best entertainment, sports, news, arts and to our own local, original content.

Following the success of Sky originals like Chernobyl, we plan to double our investment in original content by 2024. We’re also developing a new TV and movie studio, Sky Studios Elstree, which is expected to lead to the creation of over 2,000 new jobs and generate an additional £3 billion of production investment in UK creative sector in the first five years alone.

Our technology allows Sky customers to watch what they want, when they want, how they want and connects millions of people to content they love. And our online streaming service, NOW TV, brings viewers all the enjoyment of Sky with the flexibility of a contract-free service.

We also believe that a company of our scale has a responsibility that goes beyond our business, and into the community. We recently announced a series of commitments to help tackle racial injustice and improve diversity and inclusion. To ensure the commitments are delivered, Sky will invest £10million per year across its markets for each of the next three years. We’re committed to being Europe’s first net zero carbon entertainment company by 2030 – two decades before we have to – and we’re an inclusive employer recognised by The Times and Stonewall for our commitment to diversity.

About NOW TV:

NOW TV is a leading UK streaming service, giving you the best TV, box sets, movies, sports and kids entertainment whenever, and wherever, you want it. Pick from the range of content passes including Entertainment, Sky Cinema, Sky Sports, Kids and reality TV with hayu.

You can stream content to watch through the NOW TV app, available on over 60 devices including the NOW TV Smart Stick and even download your favourite shows and movies to watch on the go.

NOW TV is the home of the best new and original British comedies, Oscar, BAFTA, and Emmy award winning dramas, Sky originals and movies. NOW TV customers can enjoy over 30 new movies every month and Sky Atlantic shows, without a contract.

Sports fans can enjoy all the action across all 11 Sky Sports channels through day or month passes.

NOW TV also offers great value reliable broadband as a standalone contract-free service with NOW Broadband.

For more information, visit nowtv.com

For the latest special offers visit nowtv.com/offers

Follow us at facebook.com/NOWTV

Check out our latest videos and pictures at Instagram.com/NOWTV

Join the conversation on twitter @NOWTV