Our Story
Artmongers was formed in 2003 by artist Patricio Forrester, joined by various collaborators over the years. Our aim? To create artworks that genuinely improve public spaces and give local people a sense of pride and ownership.
We believe that public facing murals should come from a group effort. In 2006, we launched our ever-evolving participatory workshops, to engage community groups and encourage them to join us in transforming our shared spaces.
Initially, we set about creating work across a three-square mile area in South East London. We wanted residents and people passing through to slowly become familiar with our work and values. Over time, conversations with local people and organisations have evolved and we’ve developed these relationships, working towards shared goals.
In 2013 we began to take our work and processes abroad. Today, we’ve worked in the most diverse contexts, from refugee camps in the Middle East, to clinical environments, working with experts, patients and families to physically alter the space to support the needs of the people using it.
How do you spot an Artmongers piece? Our work is responsive, as well as site and group specific.
We’ve used various art forms to improve the environment and encourage participation, such as large scale photography, digitally printed murals, installations and interventions, guerilla gardening and street performances.
However, we are best known for our public murals. The defining feature of our work will be the involvement of people who live locally to the artwork, but who are not necessarily familiar with art and art-making for shared public spaces.
Our Team
Current
Patricio Forrester
— Artistic Director
Patricio came to London from Buenos Aires in 1995 to do an MFA at Goldsmiths. After graduation, he started to take his art to the streets, painting and wearing artworks wherever he went. He then transitioned to participatory processes and large scale murals, co-creating Artmongers in 2003. He often combines elements of a situationist approach with humour and colour.
Josephine Baker
— Director
Jo was a student on the first cohort of the Lewisham School of Muralism project, which was started by Artmongers in 2020. Working in the charity sector, she is an art lover and pursued it as a hobby in her spare time. Through the course she as able to build her confidence as an artist and was able to learn about technique and painting at scale. After the course she was hooked! She became a Director of Artmongers in 2021.
Cristiana Bottigella
— Director
Cristiana has been an Artmongers director since January 2020. She is particularly involved in strategic planning, development and fundraising, helping Artmongers to thrive and fulfil its mission. Cristiana has over 20 years experience in the arts as a cultural producer & art manager. She is interested in socially engaged art practices and in the social impact of the arts.
Neus Gil
— Coordinator
Neus joined Artmongers as an advisor in 2016, becoming coordinator in 2020 to help us fundraise and undergo organisational development. She is a professional dancer and choreographer with over ten years of experience in managing teams of people, project planning and fundraising as director of Nua Dance. She is interested in how arts of any medium can bring people together by moving, energising or provoking them.
Past
Laura Henry
— Director
Laura began working with Artmongers in 2017 in Aberdeen as a freelance project manager. In January 2020 she joined the board of directors. Her background is in history of art, specifically social practice, with a particular interest in rural communities. Laura has also worked with various education charities in facilitation and project management.
Julian Sharples
— Director
Julian studied with Patricio at Goldsmiths, where they became friends. In 2003, following some guerilla art making on wheelie bins, Patricio drafted him in to help set up Artmongers. During this time they enjoyed many successful projects and gradually acquired expertise from the partnership to go their separate ways in 2010, which for Julian has meant a focus on more studio-based art.
Catherine Shovlin
— Director
Catherine was already a fan of Artmongers work when she joined as a director in 2010. She was intrigued to bring her skills in behaviour research and colour psychology into the mix and loves seeing the measurable impact of the work. During her 9 years with Artmongers, her highlights are the projects ASD children and the work in the Syrian refugee camps. Joyful and meaningful!
Vision
We don’t have to accept public spaces as they are given to us. We envisage a world in which people are engaged in reimagining and transforming shared spaces together.
Art and participatory processes are powerful tools to work through the toughest challenges we have today as humans.
We want to inspire, educate and energise people to bring about positive change in the contexts they care about.
Our Mission
We empower individuals and communities through participatory processes that produce murals that improve the urban environment and encourage people to remember things can always change for the better.
Our focus is on deprived or underrepresented groups. We work with these groups to create surprisingly fresh, innovative public artworks that address specific needs in their community.
Through the Lewisham School of Muralism, we’re passing these skills on to the next generation, so they can bring new perspectives, and open up a conversation about what’s possible in our cities.
Our Values
1: Art should be free and accessible, for everyone to enjoy and no one to own.
2: Creativity is a tool for promoting active citizenship.
3: Collaboration always elevates creative pursuits.
4: A healthy creative process always leans towards other people’s needs.
5: We must find the right balance between creative freedom and questioning power structures.
6: We need to build trust in order to deliver something we can be truly proud of.
Partnerships
Alongside collaborations and help from individuals, we’ve worked with many different types of organisations over the years from London to Spain, to Azerbaijan. Here is a selection of some of those partnerships.
Funders
Alongside kind donations from individuals, many of our projects wouldn’t have happened without the financial backing of organisations both big and small. Here is a selection of our funders.
