Matty Bovan Takes Over Northern England Billboard Sites

The 2021 Woolmark Prize-winning designer Matty Bovan is taking over 20 billboard sites in the North of England, ahead of his Yorkshire Sculpture Park installation Matty Bovan: Boomerang opening in October. Documenting Bovan fitting his past 10 collections on himself, getting into character, the imagery encompasses the designer's celebrated DIY creative flair.

Created with Jack Arts and the BUILDHOLLYWOOD family, the array of towering billboards are part of the 'Your Space or Mine' project which promotes the creation of public artworks to reenergise neighbourhoods.

'I'm so excited to share these billboards with the people of Yorkshire in the run up to my YSP installation in October. Seeing any interesting or creative billboards is even more important in the age of online. I wanted these billboards to be slightly ambiguous visually, with the idea of dressing up and transforming yourself into a character... I want these to make people question their own identity, and their own reasons for selecting clothes and engaging with fashion and textiles. To be able to showcase these in Yorkshire is particularly important to me as it's my home, and where I have made all my work. With the QR code people can scan and go direct to my YSP page regarding Boomerang', Bovan explains of the venture.

Next week, Bovan will unveil his S/S 22 collection film on the London Fashion Week schedule. This year, the designer is a recipient of the British Fashion Council's NEWGEN bursary in partnership with TikTok. Then, come October 22-26, Bovan's installation at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park will open. It will be an immersive experience continuing to explore the themes of identity, authorship and personal branding in the age of social media. Visitors will have the option of being photographed in a selection of Bovan's sculptural wears. The catch? They're not allowed to photograph themselves. The resulting imagery will never be shared online, and instead will form the contents of a book. 'At a time when the average concentration of an artwork or image is three seconds, participants will be encouraged to engage with his wearable artworks for a minimum of 10 minutes, in an attempt to construct a new self-image that will be captured in a unique way, blurring sculpture, fashion and photography', the brand explains.

Visit the Matty Bovan billboards in Manchester and Sheffield.