About

Focal Point Gallery is South Essex’s gallery for contemporary visual art, promoting and commissioning major solo exhibitions, group and thematic shows, a programme of events including performances, film screenings and talks, as well as offsite projects and temporary public artworks.

The organisation  produces several exhibitions each year, in which artists and curators are given a platform to make new work in response to the gallery’s unique location on the ground floor of the town's new library and learning facility, The Forum.

Our current exhibition is 

New Model Village

Cui Jie

Sun 6 Mar to Sun 12 Jun 2022

Focal Point Gallery also lead Radical ESSEX, a county-wide partnership project with Visit Essex, Firstsite, Essex County Council, Colchester Council and Southend Borough Council, focused on celebrating the twentieth century radical histories of the county.

Focal Point Gallery also curates and commissions an on-going programme of artist moving image, screened daily on Big Screen Southend; a permanent outdoor video facility located adjacent to our main gallery space in Elmer Square.

As a key focus of our output, Focal Point Gallery’s learning programme aims to engage people of all ages in current debates around contemporary art, and looks to extend and develop new audiences. We consider the philosophies and working methods of the artists in our exhibitions programme as the starting point for inspiration, aspiration and discussion in the community. On this basis, the gallery seeks to proactively engage with a wide range of local community groups, schools, young people and children.

Focal Point Gallery receives regular funding from Arts Council England as one of the organisation's national portfolio of funded organisations. The gallery also receives regular support from Southend Borough Council. The programme receives additional funding from other trusts and foundations and collaborates with partners including arts agencies and other organisations to co-produce projects.

2019年秋，崔洁女士前往了位于埃塞克斯的1920年代现代主义工厂小镇Silve End, 以及East Tibury的Bata地产，并对其进行了初步的调查访问。经过对数字档案进一步的了解之后，崔洁女士创作出了全新的作品，以此诠释她对于这些建筑背后的社会环境和政治背景的感悟。值得关注的是，在这些作品中，崔洁很好地将埃塞克斯得天独厚的现代主义发展创造与1950年代建于上海的中国首个工人新村——曹新村的历史脉络联系起来，融合更多元素，推陈出新。关于这些实验性现代主义建筑的档案材料和信息也将作为展览的一部分进行展出。

与崔洁的合作将见证FPG在国际上广受赞誉的新项目和令人兴奋的当代艺术实践。自自 2016 年起，焦点画廊便引领了著名的 Radical ESSEX计划，该项目以历史驱动为指向，被评选为最具现代观众影响力的历史驱动地计划之一，我们很高兴通过本次展览为该项目打造一个新的国际视角。

3月19日星期六，在保罗·梅隆中心的支持下，我们将与Becontree Forever, 伦敦巴金区和达格南区 ( Barking Borough and Dagenham Borough)合作举办一场在线公开研讨会，本次会议将探讨世界不同地区的社会现代主义和工人村的概念，研究二者之间的联系和在构建方法上的显着差异，以及工人村环境与城市设计之间的关系。

该项目得到了上海天线空间、和保罗梅隆中心（Paul Mellon Centre ）的鼎力支持。

关于艺术家和焦点画廊

崔洁（b. 1983，上海）现工作和生活于上海。2006年，她于中国美术学院油画系获得学士学位。现代化、城市景观的发展和当代建筑统一且乏味的风格一直是崔洁城市系列绘画所讨论的核心主题。在崔洁的笔下，过去和现在的景象联结、交织，转化为她对过去的怀念和对未来景观那看似乌托邦式的展望与探索，从而在某种程度上引发观众的群体怀念。

崔洁毕业于中国美术学院。她的作品曾被Phaidon出版社出版的《维他命P3》收录

她的作品曾展出于ParaSite，香港（2021年）；台北市立美术馆，台北（2020）；蓬皮杜艺术中心，巴黎，（2020）； X美术馆，北京（2020）；曼彻斯特华人艺术中心，曼彻斯特，英国（2019）；四方当代美术馆，南京（2019）。崔洁的作品被收藏于纽约现代艺术博物馆;巴黎蓬皮杜中心；芝加哥艺术学院，芝加哥;奥斯陆阿斯特拉普•费恩利博物馆；卢贝尔家族 (Rubell Family Collection)，迈阿密；Kistefos博物馆，Jevnaker等机构。