The Art of Ventura
The Art of Ventura Catalogue
P&O Cruises - A celebration of a unique art collection
ISBN 978-0-9553850-1-8
Forward :
Welcome to The Art of Ventura, a celebration of the 7,000 artworks specially commissioned to grace P&O Cruises' newest and most exciting ship. Not only is Ventura the biggest super liner ever to be built for the British market, she also houses one of the largest modern British art collections in the world. Ventura was always intended to be very different from other super liners - a gateway to new experiences - and the art displayed on board reflects this initial vision. The extraordinary art collection compliments her cutting-edge design and will give immense pleasure to passengers travelling on board. Even those who don't consider themselves art lovers are sure to be inspired by the diversity of the work, as they admire the skill and craft that has gone into each piece. Creating the collection was an immense project that took two and a half years from commissioning to installation. Its completion continues the P&O Cruises tradition of commissioning exclusive works from British artists, which dates back to 1959. Throughout this book, you can enjoy a taste of the works onboard - although there is no substitute for walking around the ship and getting to know the art for yourself. The artists, whether already well established or up and coming, are organized here alphabetically - in our opinion they are all stars and many of them are bound to be big names of the future. We hope that these pages give you a real insight into what inspired each of the artists and we are confident that, as you enjoy your time on board Ventura, you too will develop a passion for their art.
The history of art and P&O Cruises
It was back in 1959 that P&O's link with fine art was firmly established, when the late Sir Colin Anderson, the director of the company at the time, commissioned a series of works for the passenger liner Canberra, by artists who went on to become huge names in the art world. As a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery, Sir Colin was well known for his love of art. He and his wife were among the first British collectors to show a passionate interest in Art Nouveau - they acquired more than 200 pieces, now considered one of the most exquisite collections in Britain. When it came to the artworks for Canberra, Sir Colin showed that he had a keen eye for talent. Among those he commissioned were David Hockney, Edward Bawden, Edward Ardizzone, Graham Sutherland and sculptors Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth. Sir Colin wanted art and P&O travel to be synonymous and that is a vision that continues today.
Artwork has always added value and enhanced passengers' experience of travel with P&O, setting its cruise ships apart. Through the passage of time, many ships have become home to all manner of fascinating pieces. In fact, Arcadia, Aurora and Oriana each individually hold more works of art than are on display at the National Gallery in London. As P&O Cruises' managing director, Nigel Esdale, puts it: "Bespoke design and attention to detail are an integral part of P&O Cruises' ships, and as such each ship has its own distinct personality. The art collection has always been at the heart of that personality, illustrating what the ship stands for, as well as creating a unique look and feel. It also provides an additional dimension to our passengers' experience, giving them food for thought and enhancing their enjoyment of the public spaces.
When creating a new ship, the art collection is treated with the same careful attention to detail as every other aspect of the ship's design, with a great deal of thought given to each and every piece. I'm delighted to say that this fine tradition has continued with Ventura, with spectacular results." Indeed, the tradition has not only been continued, but built upon. By far the most ambitious art project to date, Ventura houses an astonishing 7,000 artworks by 43 artists. Ventura could be described as the embodiment of the evolution of P&O Cruises and her amazing British art collection reflects this perfectly.
The resurgence of Brit art
Continuing the tradition begun by Sir Colin, all the artists being exhibited on Ventura are British or live and work in Britain. They come from as far afield as Scotland and Cornwall, Devon and North Yorkshire, and include British artists working in Barcelona and the Dordogne in France. Their media include oil and acrylic on canvas, glasswork, bronze, stainless steel, photography, digital prints, lenticular prints and murals to name but a few.
The man behind the exclusive collection is art consultant Tom Tempest-Radford, who worked closely with P&O Cruises then managing director David Dingle to see the project through from start to finish, and who also commissioned the artworks for Oriana and Aurora. "It's a long process, in this case it was 2 1/2 years ", explained Tempest-Radford of Ventura. "It begins when the ship's architects and designers create spaces where they imagine the art will be exhibited. I then consider what might work in these spaces - what size of painting or sculpture, for example, and which artists' pieces might have a particularly good impact within them.
"I chose artists I know well and trusted completely - people I knew would deliver", he continues. "I had to find the right artists to create pieces for each part of the ship and , as always, quality was foremost. You always take risks when you work with art, for the simple reason that you never really know what you will get, but I commissioned only people I believed would create superb pieces within the time we asked. I never limit artists by telling them what to do, however, that's where their vision and imagination come into play.”
"There were practical considerations too. I needed to be sure each artist could do all I asked, right down to the fixings. They also needed to be able to communicate clearly how they wanted the piece mounted or hung. Every detail is important. It's a bit like baking a cake; if the ingredients aren't right in the first place, then the end result simply won't work, and we naturally couldn't allow that to happen."
Once Tempest-Radford and Dingle had selected the most appropriate artists, Tempest-Radford set about commissioning. Of the 43 selected artists, some were asked to make one piece, others were asked to create a number of works over two years.
Art is displayed in all the public areas of the ship, but each of the 3 main passenger stairwells contain work by a single artist and together these form the highlight of the collection. The mid-ship stairwell houses 44 micro-mosaics by London based artist Vanessa Ballard, and these mosaics comprise more than 100,000 tiny photographs in total. Ballard travelled the world to take the pictures and spent hundreds of hours editing them and preparing the mosaics, because not only the finished mosaics, but every picture within them, had to be perfect. The project took her more than a year to complete.
The forward stairwell is home to 43 lenticular prints presented as giant, post-modernism postcards. Wiltshire artist Johnny Bull has embraced technology to create landscapes and cityscapes in layers, featuring photographs of people in various places he has visited. Each print is made up of around 20 plastic lenses that work together to create a hologram-like illusion of depth and movement.
The aft stairwell showcases 24 painting by Paul Critchley, a Merseyside artist now living in Spain. To create his works for the Ventura, Critchley covered over 100 pieces of cut aluminium with canvas and paint.
"Together, the artworks on the three staircases make a major statement," says Tempest-Radford. "Passengers use the stairwells all the time and should be able to navigate their way around the ship by the artworks they are passing and admiring. All of which enhances the passengers' on board experience on board Ventura and complements her incredible design."
Something for everyone
It was always essential that each piece of art would work with the design and theme of the area of the ship in which it was placed. Tempest-Radford and Dingle agreed early on that, in line with the concept that Ventura would be a gateway to new experiences, the artworks on board should be more challenging than those works previously commissioned by P&O Cruises, to encourage passengers to think about their environment in a new way. But it was, of course, always important that the art was accessible to everyone, from serious art lovers to those who had spent little time thinking about it before. "The variety of the art means that there is something for everyone to enjoy," says Tempest-Radford.
The range of subject matters of the works displayed on Ventura is vast. Abstracts and still life flowers and fruit meld perfectly with landscapes, animals and people. The unifying factor, as with the artists themselves, is Britishness (the theme of the cabin corridors, to take one example, is the British coast) and all of this sits beautifully with the British design of the ship. It is not just the interior design of the ship and the artworks that are original - the presentation of many of the works is new too. Tempest-Radford explains : "While the subject matter and the media are sometimes traditional - a seascape in oils, for example - the new presentation of an unframed canvas is modern and works well with the ship's design."
So do enjoy your holiday on board Ventura, and know that you will be travelling on one of the world's greatest and contemporary super liners, completely bespoke in her design and carrying the finest and most diverse collection of art that P&O Cruises has commissioned to date. As a passenger, you are part of what is surely one of the most exciting projects in art and travel the world has ever seen.
Paul Critchley (page 14)
Critchley was born in 1960 in Merseyside and now lives and works in Barcelona. Both his parents were art teachers who took him and his brothers and sister on tours of Europe as children. The artist has since lived in Berlin, The Netherlands, France and Italy, and has spent time in New York and Moscow. To create the series of paintings for Ventura, he covered more than 100 pieces of cut aluminium with canvas and paints.
"By presenting familiar objects in an unfamiliar yet understandable manner, I hope to provoke the viewer to look anew, reconstruct what he or she sees in the their mind's eye and then see the familiar in a new way. The result can be both exciting and shocking."
10/4/2008
P & O PRESS RELEASE
November 2006
British icons set sail on the largest superliner designed for Britain
Three distinct elements of British culture will be brought together by P&O Cruises when Ventura, the £300 million superliner designed specifically for British holidaymakers, is launched in April 2008 with an emphasis on fine dining, modern and contemporary art and family entertainment.
P&O Cruises, managing director, David Dingle, stated that Ventura will set a new standard for 21st century cruising from the UK, with her mix of innovation, creative design and cutting edge features. “Each time we build a new ship, we look for evolution rather than revolution. We’re committed to creating a designer ship that can be enjoyed by our existing passengers and embraced by those that haven’t cruised with us before. Ventura will take the contemporary cruise experience to the next level. Her stylish interior and range of facilities will appeal to people who might not have previously considered a cruise holiday, as well as those who enjoy cruising on big, modern ships. Our research tells us that in Britain today people are looking to escape the stress of work and everyday life and find more time to relax and play. They want to spend more quality time together as families and couples. And, while they are always looking for value for money, value for time is more of a priority. Ventura is designed to meet those needs.”
Design on board Ventura
To develop the vision for Ventura, P&O Cruises tapped into its long experience of catering for British tastes as well as the results of research on the changing needs of contemporary Britain. Armed with this learning, P&O Cruises turned to the most contemporary architects and designers working in the UK and abroad.
This commitment extends from the exterior of the ship through to the interior design and renowned British designer Nick Munro has been brought on board as a design consultant for Ventura.
Munro has been involved in the design of Ventura from the very beginning, taking an interest in the commissioning of the furnishings, glassware and tableware. Renowned for his unique furniture, ceramic and homeware designs, Munro will also be creating bespoke items designed specifically for contemporary British tastes from a broad selection of materials including crystal, silver, slate and china. These will help create an environment that is visually stimulating and welcoming to Ventura's passengers.
Art on board Ventura
Tate Modern
P&O Cruises has partnered with art experts Tate Modern to host ‘Introduction to Modern Art’ special interest cruises to be held throughout the year. These cruises will be hosted by experts from Tate Modern and give passengers the opportunity to attend seminars, presentations and practical art classes on cruises throughout the year.
On board art
Ventura will be a floating showcase for the very best of British contemporary art with 7,000 different pieces from 55 artists decorating the ship. Over £1 million has been spent commissioning the finest pieces of modern art by leading British artists. The works are often tactile and interactive and always stimulating. The cabins also take a break from the norm, with canvasses decorating the walls instead of traditional prints.
The three stairwells will be a highlight of the art on board, with each stairwell being created by a contemporary British artist to provide passengers with perceptual experiences and visual illusions.
Paul Critchley - Paul is using more than 100 pieces of cut aluminium, which are covered with canvas and painted to create interiors, square globes, people, clothes, groups of objects, to form multiple piece paintings. Paul’s works will adorn the aft stairwell and create ‘ten more exciting rooms for Ventura”.
Vanessa Ballard – Vanessa is creating 44 artworks from more than 60,000 digital photographs, which will be hung in the midships stairwell. Each work will have a central form that is understandable from a distance, but as you move closer it becomes apparent the image is made up of many much smaller pictures. Vanessa will travel the globe in search of the pictures that will also provide myriad hidden clues.
Johnny Bull – The forward stairwell will be home to 42 incredible lenticular works of art. This new technology means Johnny can create land and cityscapes in layers, featuring people from photographs of the places he has visited. Each image will be made from approximately 20 plastic lenses that create an illusion of depth and movement, much like a hologram.
For further press information, images and CADS please contact:
Michele Andjel,
Michele.andjel@carnivalukgroup.com
michele.andjel@pocruises.com
Tel: (+44) 023 8065 6653
Kate Rist,
kate.rist@pocruises.com
Tel: (+44) 023 8065 6652
