Artist Residency

Thompson Hall

March - May 2022

Autograph Artist-in-Residence

ABOUT THE residency

Artist Thompson Hall was selected for an artist residency at Autograph, to support the development of his creative practice during the Covid-19 crisis. With support from ActionSpace, the residency took place 7 March - 31 May 2022 in Autograph’s building in Hackney, London.

The residency was open-ended opportunity, providing space to think and create without the expectation of a fixed outcome. Hall was provided with travel expenses, a fee to support the residency, a materials budget, production assistance, a private studio space and access to our archive.

This on-site residency was Autograph’s first, signifying a landmark moment in our history. It was an outcome of our ongoing work in collaboration with Project Art Works, on the EXPLORERS project, and with Shape Arts on the Transforming Leadership programme, as part of which Hall received mentoring from Autograph’s Learning and Participation Manager, Livvy Murdoch, and our Director, Mark Sealy.



“Over the last year or so I have had the privilege of getting to know Thompson Hall and share thoughts with him. This has been a journey through both words and images. His work in our time is pressing and urgent and I am delighted to have him join us for this residency.”

— Mark Sealy

about the artist

Thompson Hall

Thompson Hall is a London based artist. Primarily working with acrylic paint and pastel drawings, Hall’s often colourful palette takes inspiration from artists including Chris Ofili and Frank Auerbach. Through abstracted symbols and text, Hall’s work explores the inequalities of society and the world around him, in regards to politics, social change, marginalisation and, most recently, the impact that Covid-19 is having on our society.

Hall was awarded an Emerging Artist commission and a Micro Grant from Unlimited in 2017 and 2020 respectively. He has exhibited in group shows across the UK and has had solo exhibitions at Regency Town House in Hove, Brighton Dome, and Project Ability, Glasgow. Hall is a resident artist at ActionSpace’s Cockpit Arts Studio.

Find out more about the artist via ActionSpace’s website.

Read More

outcomes

sample

7 research trips

Hall visited art galleries and museums to inform his research and creative inspiration

sample

1 Display

We displayed a selection of Thompson Hall's works on Autograph's building, for the public to see

Find out more

sample

6 studio visits

Sharing Hall's work with other practitioners in the field

Local Reach

Hall's residency has featured in three local Hackney newspapers

sample

2 online Image Galleries

Showcasing the artist's work

View them here

sample

288 studio hours

Creatively spent in the studio space at Autograph 

sample

more than 20 new works made

Paintings, drawings and developmental works with new materials including textiles, spray paint and inks

sample

7 artworks Acquired

Hall's works were purchased by Imperial Health Charity

sample

1 Digital Display

Lighting up the Old Street roundabout with Hall's artwork

Find out more

sample

1 conference presentation

Hall shared his work, learning and experience of the residency as part of the EXPLORERS 2022 conference at Tate Liverpool

sample

1 artist monograph published

The monograph Thompson Hall: Colour is My Signature will be published Spring 2024

Find out more

Related CONTENT

Inequality, Marginalisation and Social Change

See more of Hall's works in our online gallery

See more

Five quick questions

Hall reflects on the first month of his residency at Autograph

Read | 3 min read

A Call to Care

Hall discusses how Covid-19 has impacted artists with learning disabilities

Watch

Racial Inequality and Social Welfare

A selection of works Hall produced during his time on the residency

See more

Outdoor display

Addressing issues of empire, social welfare, the cost-of-living crisis and the ongoing impacts of Covid-19

See more

Acknowledgements

This residency is supported by ActionSpace and is part of the EXPLORERS project. EXPLORERS is a national creative programme for increasing the visibility and representation of neurodivergent artists in contemporary visual art.

supported by

Banner image: Thompson Hall with his paintings at Autograph. Photograph courtesy Autograph.

Images on page: 1) Thompson Hall, photo © and courtesy of ActionSpace. 2) Thompson Hall, Cacophony of Covid 19 [detail], 2020 © and courtesy of ActionSpace. 4) Thompson Hall, Lockdown Anarchy [detail], from the series Lockdown Legacy, 2020 © and courtesy of ActionSpace. 5) Transforming Leadership logo. 6) Thompson Hall in residence at Autograph, March 2022. Photograph: Jasmine Sarkodee-Adoo. 7) Thompson Hall, Living on a Breadline [detail], 2019 © and courtesy of ActionSpace. 8) Hackney Citizen Logo.