They are on loan from the prestigious Lodeveans Collection of international contemporary art, established in April 2006 by visionary father and son collectors, Stuart and John Evans. The exhibition, 'Obsession: Contemporary Art from the Lodeveans Collection,' runs from 22 September until 28 November 2009. The Gallery is open Mon-Sat, 10-5pm, and admission is free.

The Lodeveans collecting mission is to bring together young artists, working in different media, who challenge people to reassess the ways they think, with their artwork. London-based collectors Stuart and John Evans aim to make this new work publicly accessible, through loans, exhibitions, and publications worldwide. The Leeds exhibition will highlight some of the key works in the collection, focussing in particular on the obsessive technique and themes of many of the artists included. The often meticulous attention to detail and analytic concepts of these artists is mirrored in the obsessive devotion to contemporary art of the Lodeveans collectors themselves.

Exhibitions Officer Layla Bloom says 'Stuart and John are completely committed to supporting young contemporary artists. They're not only supporting them in the short term, by buying their work at an early stage in their careers, but also, they're giving these young artists a more promising future by promoting their artwork through loans to exhibitions worldwide. They're the kind of collectors young artists are falling over themselves to meet.'  The exhibition will include works by promising newcomers to the international art scene, including Trevor Appleson, Mustafa Hulusi and Nogah Engler, as well as established artists like Anna Barriball and Richard Forster.

Stuart Evans, who graduated from the School of Law at the University of Leeds, has been a partner at London law firm Simmons & Simmons since 1981, where he was responsible for amassing his firm's own corporate art collection. He has also served as Chairman of the Tate Patrons of New Art from 1997 to 2000 and was a juror for the 2001 Turner Prize.  John Evans, a London property investor, followed in his father's footsteps when he began collecting at the age of 18 - negotiating the purchase of a drawing by rising star Tracy Emin in 1995. John helped organise the first Zoo Art Fair and has been involved in the production of video artworks.

The exhibition will be accompanied by an exhibition catalogue of the Lodeveans Collection, showing a snapshot of the artistic diversity, talent and imagination emerging on a global scale. The richly illustrated publication will include contextual essays and a full catalogue of the entire collection. The publication, designed by Leeds-based artist-designer collective Nous Vous, will be available later this autumn from the Gallery shop.

A full programme of free, public events related to the exhibition has been planned. This will include talks and workshops on the themes of collecting and contemporary art. Two special public events will also be held during the exhibition: the ever-popular Leeds Light Night, 9 October 2009, featuring a family-friendly conceptual art project throughout the night, and 'The Big Draw' family fun day, 24 October 2009. Full event details can be found on the gallery website: www.leeds.ac.uk/gallery/events.htm

Notes to Editors:

IMAGE CONTACT & EXHIBITION CURATOR:
Layla Bloom, Exhibitions Officer
t: 0113 343 2777 e: l.bloom@leeds.ac.uk m: 0772835 0054
 
ADMISSION/ HOURS:
10.00 - 17.00, Mon-Saturday
Admission: FREE

VENUE INFORMATION:
The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, Parkinson Building, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT
www.leeds.ac.uk/gallery
Tel: +44 (0)113 3432778
Fax: +44 (0)113 3435561
E-mail: gallery@leeds.ac.uk

The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery is an accredited art museum at the heart of the University of Leeds campus, recently refurbished in 2008 with funds from the Audrey & Stanley Burton Charitable Trust. The Gallery offers both a programme of temporary exhibitions and a display of selected treasures from the University Art Collection in its main gallery. An Education Room houses the University's collection of drawings and works on paper, while also offering space for private study, research and teaching.

Accumulated over more than a hundred years, the Collection consists mainly of European, principally British paintings, drawings and prints, dating from the 17th century up to the present day, with small collections of sculpture, ceramics, and photographs. Outstanding elements are the Sadler Gift of early 20th-century British art, the collections of drawings and paintings by artists of the Camden Town and Bloomsbury groups and their contemporaries, and works by former Gregory Fellows in Painting and Sculpture, and the recent gift of works from the late Stanley & Audrey Burton's personal collection of 20th-century British art.

The Lodeveans Collection
http://www.lodeveanscollection.com/

Stuart and John Evans began building this collection of international contemporary art in April 2006. Our intention is to acquire artworks in different media which are prophetic in the sense that they challenge people to reassess the ways in which they think. Artists operating in different countries, who are not in any way connected, turn out to be exploring very similar processes and themes. Our aim is to bring works of these artists together.

As well as collecting work by young artists we will focus on work made in the second half of the twentieth century where this has influenced current practice. We wish to make the Lodeveans Collection publicly accessible and will make loans and organise exhibitions.

Stuart Evans: Stuart has been a partner at international law firm Simmons & Simmons since 1981. He has advised on a number of high profile mergers and acquisitions, including Telefonica's acquisition of O2 and Wal-Mart's acquisition of Asda. Stuart has been responsible for assembling a major collection of contemporary art for Simmons & Simmons. Between 1997 and 2000, Stuart was chairman of the Tate Patrons of New Art, and in 2001, was a juror on the Turner Prize.
http://www.simmons-simmons.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=offices.people_bio&page=335&person_id=59842

John Evans: John is a private investor in property. At the age of 18, John purchased his first piece of art - a drawing by Tracey Emin, at the opening of the Tracey Emin Museum in 1995. More recently, John has been involved in the production of video artworks by Turner-nominated Isaac Julien and US video artist John Pilson. He played a role in organising the first Zoo Art Fair.