Public Projects

Sappleton's artistic approach heavily relies on the incorporation of found material. However, she experienced growing frustration stemming from the underrepresentation of individuals belonging to racial minority groups, particularly women of colour, within the fashion and editorial publications that served as her primary source material. This frustration gave rise to ‘Scan/Exchange’ (2017),  a project that sought to utilize the personal archives of fellow individuals from diverse racial backgrounds. The aims of the project were twofold: to employ these archival materials in Sappleton's artistic practice and to promote their preservation, thereby ensuring that future generations can access and engage with these images within their respective families. Through a range of commissions, which have involved working with communities local to the likes of Great Ormond Street Hospital, Sutton House (National Trust) and South London Gallery, the project has been able to engage people from an ever-expanding variety of ages, ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds. Along with this, the manner in which such exchanges take place has also evolved, allowing for an iterative methodology to emerge for each new instance.

In addition to Scan/Exchange, Cherelle hosts a number of deep listening relaxation events and collage workshops with the public, working with organisations such as Barrowfull, V&A Lates, Autograph, Bath Spa University, the Royal Academy of Arts, Where Else, Margate Arts Club, The Margate School, and Arts Education Exchange.

Great Ormond Street Hospital 2022

GOSH Arts sought a new artwork to be created for the hospital staff to mark their extraordinary efforts and sacrifices during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Through staging Scan/Exchange events with members and calling out for physical and digital submissions, Cherelle created ‘Light blue… clouds parted’, a 9-meter wallpaper and window installation for the Lagoon staff area within the hospital.

Hospital Rooms 2021

A commission to create new artwork for an area in Titian Ward, a men’s psychiatric intensive care unit.

SLG Big Family Press

2019

In Autumn 2019, Cherelle worked with Soutrg London gallery’s Big Family Press on a series of collaborative workshops centred on creative explorations of shared identities and histories.

Over 14 weeks, children from Oliver Goldsmith Primary School Camberwell worked with Cherelle and the SLG team in regular after-school sessions. Together, they developed a collage library of personal and familiar imagery, to be used collectively by the group in creative workshops.

The workshops acted as a catalyst for conversation about our shared or differentiated experiences, our family histories and our memories. Cherelle’s Big Family Press commission built on her long-term research project Scan/Exchange, which draws on the personal archives of people of colour to use as collage material and instigate preservation for future generations.

From September to December 2019, the Big Family Press was: Abdi, Ben, Cherelle, Daniel, Davinia, Esther, Ethan, Jenny, Jemimah, Kamil, Liesl, Lily, Rahmaa, Tilewa and Zahraa.

National Trust 2019

A commission to produce new artwork for Sutton House, London in response to a report produced by artist, producer and filmmaker Michele d’Acosta, for the National Trust that explored black women’s empowerment in 2018, the centenary anniversary suffrage. Sappleton initiated a project called Scan/Exchange in 2017 which aims to digitise personal archives belonging to women of colour.  Sappleton used the commission as an opportunity to engage with women connected to Hackney or Sutton House and collect images to be used in the creation of this new body of work. This show explores and responds to the testimonies contained in the report, the scanned photographs donated to the artist, the dynamic history of the house as well as her own British, Jamaican and Dominican heritage.

The room felt alive with thoughtful conversation and creativity, a really lovely session.
— Jemima Senior, RA