Archives Projects: Creativity
Outside the Box: Stained Glass Graffiti Art
Outside the Box was a public art project that saw the creation of twelve mini-murals on The Stonebow in York. The project saw world renowned graffiti artist, HazardOne, take inspiration from our archive collection of J.W. Knowles & Sons, a family firm of church decorators, glass painters, and stained-glass designers and restorers.
The colourful and emphatic mini-murals brought the archives from the strongroom to the heart of the city and celebrated York’s rich and historic relationship with stained glass artists. This project was a collaboration between Explore York Libraries and Archives, York BID, York Civic Trust, and York Glaziers Trust. The project was made possible through engagement grant funding from the National Archives.
You can read more about the Knowles collection in the collections guides or on our archives catalogue. You can browse and purchase digitised images from the collection available on our York Images website.
Archive Activists
Drawing on material from Explore York archive, artists Stephen Hodgkins and Alun Kirby present five local historical moments, within the theme of ‘crime and punishment’. Four of these moments are highlighted with example fonts from a specimen book produced by York’s Delittle Wood Type Manufacturer. A fifth moment is presented using a woodcut print taken from an account of the trial and execution of James Moseley and William Roberts in 1822. This piece is one of three banners created for Explore York, one focused on how we came to have a free library in York and another on a history of protest in York.
Let us Satisfy Our Eyes
In 2018, Alun Kirby, artist in residence at York Explore, installed his beautiful piece of artwork, inspired by the Knowles Collection from the York Explore Archives. The collection comprises drawings, research notes and hundreds of glass plate negative images of stained glass from York and beyond. Let Us Satisfy Our Eyes celebrates the Knowles Collection, the work of the Archive in preserving it for public use, and the glorious beauty of York’s stained glass windows.
