World-class art and experiences, including Jonathan Bailey and Joe Lycett’s items, are going under the hammer at Terrence Higgins Trust’s charity auction at Christie’s in London on Monday, April 15. All lots are available to view online via The Auction Collective.
Leading artists Conrad Shawcross, Maggi Hambling and Navot Miller have also donated pieces to support the vital work of the UK’s leading HIV and sexual health charity. Since it began, the event has raised more than £5.2million to fund the charity’s life-changing HIV services, including its free helpline THT Direct.
Jonathan Bailey, star of Bridgerton, Fellow Travelers and upcoming Wicked, has signed a limited edition silk scarf he designed for Echo NY. About the scarf, Jonathan said: “To me, joy is primary colours and cycling alongside an open vista…”
Jonathan’s donation follows his leading role in Fellow Travelers, which charts a decades long romance between Tim (Bailey) and Hawk (Matt Bomer) from the 1950s through to the start of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. Bailey won a Critics Choice Award for his performance.
About his donation, Jonathan Bailey, said: “Terrence Higgins Trust is an iconic force for good. My time filming Fellow Travelers ignited a determination to support charities that hold, nurture and celebrate the LGBTQ+ family.”
Joe Lycett’s acrylic painting on canvas is called ‘Slags’, which he jokingly says “stands out as a particularly remarkable painting that skilfully captures the essence of flowers.”
Navot Miller’s Anmar and Denise in Wedding typifies the artist’s use of a vibrant, highly contrasted palette of solid pinks, yellows, blue and greens, and was donated by Miller and Carl Freedman Gallery.
Curtis Holder, winner of Sky Arts’ Portrait Artist of the Year, will create a line portrait for one lucky bidder. Holder’s posthumous portrait of Terry Higgins – the first named person to die of an AIDS-related illness – now hands in the National Portrait Gallery.
Other lots include tickets to Magic Mike in London and a money-can’t-buy makeup artist experience with MAC Director of Makeup Artist and BBC Glow Up judge Dominic Skinner.
Lots are split across the live auction at Christie’s on 15 April and an online auction via The Auction Collective, which is open for bidding and closes on 16 April. Highlights from the online auction include works by Sara Sammakia, Rob and Nick Carter, Rana Begum, Felipe Chavez and Stuart Sandford. As well as a VIP Masked Singer experience and private performance from cellist Isobelle Austin who most recently did a recording for Netflix’s global hit One Day.
Joe Lycett, said: “I’m very proud to donate Slags to Terrence Higgins Trust’s charity auction and hope it raises loads of money to support people affected by HIV in the UK. This piece of art, which I have personally created with my own fists, stands out as a particularly remarkable painting that skilfully captures the essence of flowers.
“However, this is no ordinary floral representation like you might get from Monet, Georgia O’Keeffe or Bob Ross. Each flower depicted in this artwork carries an unconventional twist, because over each one I’ve written the word ‘slag.’ This term, often used colloquially, here playfully contrasts with the traditional beauty and delicacy associated with flowers, introducing a layer of irony and critique. Through this unique juxtaposition, the painting invites viewers to reconsider their perceptions of beauty and value, and of slags.”
Richard Angell, Chief Executive of Terrence Higgins Trust, added: “We’re on a mission to end new HIV cases in the UK by 2030 and our auction at Christie’s is a crucial part of helping to achieve that. We’re so grateful to Jonathan, Joe and everyone else who has so generously donated to ensure the night is a huge success. Artists and creatives have been absolute key to the UK’s HIV response since the start of the AIDS crisis 40 years ago and that still holds true today.”
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