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War Boutique
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The artist, Kevin Leahy, was born in Glasgow in 1965. He attended The Scottish College of Textiles (part of Heriot- Watt University, Edinburgh) where he became impassioned by textiles. He learned many skills including knitting, weaving, sewing and embroidery of fabrics; textile technology and development alongside the designing of prints and pattern-making. He obtained a BSc. (Hons) in Textiles and Fashion Design.

His first employment in the textiles industry was making crinolines for the theatre, an influence that has surfaced in his Peace Pod series. Shortly after this, he started working for a company making body armour for police forces and armies around the world. This is where his interest in the highly sophisticated materials used for resisting bullets, bombs and stabs started. The strength and lightness of these materials including Kevlar and Dyneema fascinated him.

During his employment, he visited many Top Secret Ministry Of Defence sites. He made armour for the British, Egyptian, Indian, Pakistani and Algerian armies. His other projects include creating protective uniforms for the Metropolitan Police, MOD Police, Hertfordshire Constabulary, British Transport Police, Sussex Police, Cambridgeshire Constabulary, Staffordshire Police, Strathclyde Police, Tayside Police as well as for the Italian Carabinieri and Mexico City Police.

His work is comparable to that of Tracey Emin in both her use of textiles redolent with meaning, and the homely, time-consuming method of stitching. In the same way, War Boutique exploits the symbolic quality and potential of the requisitioned and recycled uniforms, military and ballistic materials to explore ideas of war, power structures, and our involvement in shaping these. War Boutique plays on parallels with the concept of the 'fashion house' to examine cultural trends, and to experiment with new ways of presenting, distributing and contextualising work.

As one commentator noted he "symbolically transforms instruments of war and destruction into constructive items embodying creativity, peace and critical social commentary".

He went on to obtain an MFA in Fine Art from Goldsmiths College in 2009 and became artist-in-residence at Our Lady of Sorrows church in Southwark, London in 2010.

Selected Exhibitions and Collaborations:

2010 - 'DIY: A Revolution in Handicrafts' Society for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh (touring USA 2011)
2006 - Noosphere, as part of 'Mount London', Tate Britain
2006 - Peace-Pod installation, Save the Children, The British Museum
2005 - 'Sit?', Geffrye Museum, London
2005 - 'Army Dreamers' photographic shoot of wearable artworks, featuring Alexander McQueen, I-D Magazine
2004 - 'Peace Not War' ballistic vest

01 Jul 2014
Andipa Gallery would like to invite you to attend the Dresden edition of the exhibition ‘Caught in the Crossfire’, which will feature works by War Boutique alongside a long list of prominent modern and contemporary artists. This travelling show will run at Dresden Stadtmuseum from Saturday 5th July...
19 Feb 2013
This talk by the artist War Boutique will take the viewer on a journey through the use of military armour and technical textiles within an artistic practice, referencing key pieces from his ballistic collection. This is a unique opportunity to meet one of the artists whose work is displayed as part...
09 Oct 2012
This group show entitled 'Bedlam' opened during the Frieze Week in London. The exhibition is inspired by the infamous asylum, ‘Bethlam’ - London’s Hospital for the clinically insane, epitomising the brutality long associated with mental institutes. Exhibiting artists include Antony Micallef,...
 
 
Banksy | War Boutique
Banksy
War Boutique

Banksy I War Boutique

The market for urban art is continuing to expand and integrate into the mainstream. Works by urban artists are now beginning to be included in the collections of the most respected museums and public galleries worldwide, including MOCA (LA) who plan to put on the first major survey of street art to be shown in the US later this year. The exhibition Banksy | War Boutique presents an exciting opportunity for collectors to acquire original works by two mavericks of urban art - one just emerging onto the international stage, choosing to put on his first commercial exhibition at Andipa, and one already recognised as amongst the biggest names in contemporary art today. BANKSY FROM THE COLLECTION OF ANDIPA | GROUND FLOOR GALLERY WAR BOUTIQUE | LOWER GROUND FLOOR GALLERY