extInked Artwork for Sale!

To celebrate the national tour of the extInked project, UHC has created a special revised edition of the extInked Almanac. There are only one hundred copies of this limited edition publication available, so hurry up and get yourself one before they sell out! Priced at £20.00, each copy is numbered and signed by the artist.

Whilst you're checking out the book, why not take a look at the extInked drawings. A number of the original artworks that formed the basis of the one hundred tattoos are still available to purchase, priced at £80.00.

To find out more please visit the UHC online shop.

WILDLIFE AMBASSADORS MAKE THEIR MARK IN THE M.E.N.

Our Jai Redman is interviewed in todays M.E.N talking about the launch of We are extInked at the Manchester Museum. The full article is below:

WILDLIFE AMBASSADORS MAKE THEIR MARK

A project to highlight plants and animals threatened by extinction using permanent tattoos has gone on show in Manchester.

ExtInked saw 100 volunteers tattooed with an image of a species in the UK under threat.

The aim was for each person to become an 'ambassador' for the species they were tattooed with and to campaign for it's survival.

Now two years on, portraits of all of the volunteers - tattooed with everything from eagles to toads and wildflowers - are on display in an exhibition at Manchester Museum.

Jai Redman, who was head artist on extInked and is now creative director of artists' collective Ultimate Holding Company which ran the project, chose a tattoo of a smooth snake.

He said: "The project started a couple of years ago so this is about catching up with the ambassadors and the work they are continuing to do to promote their species."

The photographs of each ambassador, plus original drawings of the designs, will be on display until November.

For further information about the extInked project and We are extInked tour please visit the project website - www.extinked.org.uk.

For exhibition details and information about related events at the Manchester Museum please visit - www.manchester.ac.uk/museum.

'We are extInked' launches tonight at the Manchester Museum

Come and join us this evening as we celebrate the launch of We are extInked at the Manchester Museum.

This exhibition documents extInked, a unique arts and ecology project which began in 2009 as a response to species loss in the UK.

We are extInked brings together the original pen and ink drawings, documentary footage of the tattooing process and extraordinary photographic portraits of the ambassadors created on a rare 19th century camera by Anatomy Projects. The work will be shown alongside rare specimens from The Manchester Museum collections and documentation of the progress of the 100 volunteer ambassadors as they work to protect and advocate for their species.

The exhibition opens to the public on July 9^th 2011 and will be situated alongside the new 'Living Worlds' Gallery, which explores the connections between all living things, including us, and shows how we can all shape the future by the choices we make.

We are extInked launch:

Friday 8th July 2011 -

6.00 - 8.00pm

(Speeches at 6.30pm)

The Manchester Museum

The University of Manchester

Oxford Road

Manchester

M13 9PL

For more information on how to get to the museum please click here.

For more information about the extInked project and the We are extInked tour please click here.

***extInked exhibition announcement***

Go Into the Wild with extInked...

We are delighted to announce that extInked will be featured in the forthcoming exhibition Into the Wild at Smiths Row Contemporary Arts and Crafts Gallery in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

Opening Saturday 14th May 2011, Into the Wild will showcase a collection of work from eight artists and collectives exploring with the wilderness around us and our relationship with the infinite flora and fauna within it.

Directly inspired by the beautiful rural surroundings of Suffolk, Into the Wild aims to alert visitors to the seemingly invisible wildlife around us everyday and the idea that 'wilderness' is closer than it might at first seem. Nature adapts and reclaims environment whether urban, office or park bench....there is wonder and enchantment in the smallest spider or invertebrate.

The artists will offer audiences an insight in to this wonderful world....

Ultimate Holding Company

Ultimate Holding Company will present extInked as a body of work documenting the story of the unique arts and ecology project from its inception in 2009 through to the current work of the one hundred ambassadors.

Laura Pullig

Laura Pullig’s Responsive Flower. Her use of technology seeks to re-enchant and reflect nature back at us.

Beatriz da Costa

Beatriz da Costa has created a downloadable phone application which will allow audiences to identify the habitat of endangered species from wherever their location in the UK.

Lee Patterson

Lee Pattersons’ sonic recordings reveal the sounds of the wilderness which normally cannot be heard by the human ear. Patterson is currently working in residence at Flatford Mill, carrying out field studies by the Norfolk Broads to produce a new work for the show.

Eleanor Morgan

The technical wonder of Eleanor Morgan’s Spiderweb Cup and Saucer is testimony to the artist’s curiosity at our human relationship with animals.

Sam Bakewell

Another highly intricate work in the show is parian-ware sculpture by Sam Bakewell, this work pays homage to the endangered honey bee.

Chiz Turnross

Chiz Turnross’ fevered painting of countless birds creates a colourful flock within the Gallery.

Matthew Smith

A panorama continues through the work of Matthew Smith and his series of drawings entitled British Wildlife depicting mammals, birds and trees which are silhouetted against a gloomy sky.

For more information about the exhibition please click here.

Bee Roads creating a buzzzzzzzzzzz!

The latest Plan Bee initiative by our friends at Buglife (The Invertebrate Conservation Trust) is to create Bee Roads by planting corridors of rare wildflowers to encourage wild bees, honeybees, hoverflies, butterflies and moths. To read the full article please click here.

extInked featured in Epoca Magazine, a weekly publication in BRAZIL!

Two weeks ago I was contacted by a journalist from Epoca Magazine, a weekly publication in Brazil who was interested in writing an article about the extInked project. To see the finished piece please click here.

However if like myself, you have not mastered the portuguese language please see my attempt at translating the article in to english below (I apologise now for any inaccuracy within the translation!):

Tattoos to save Nature

Over the years the environmentalists have thought of different ways to alert the population to the extinction of plant and animal species. They created posters, films, documentaries, billboards and web campaigns, and even tied themselves in public buildings to protest. Now a British company took the idea further, and tattooed on to one hundred volunteers, species in danger of disappearing in the UK.

The project was conceived by Ultimate Holding Company, an art and design collective. Called extInked (a pun on the word "defunct" and the word "ink" in English "ink"), the project began during a symbolic date: November 2009, the same year as Darwin's bicentenary. The initiative goes beyond ink and skin. "We wanted to make an artistic and sociological experiment," says Kate Houlton, coordinator of extInked. "The goal was to prove that our generation wants to save the planet, and is willing to take extreme measures to prove their passion."

Initially, we made a list of one hundred species at risk in the UK: birds, fish, amphibians, mammals, plants and fungi. Then the artist Jai Redman created an illustration of each species, following a style compatible with the records of Darwin. The illustrations were exhibited for a period of a month at a location in Manchester and people interested in acquiring a tattoo were asked to complete an application form. In it, they had to specify which animal they would like to tattoo of, and why. "We were shocked when on the first night, three hundred people signed up," says Kate. "Some species were more popular than others, such as the bees. Other species received less registrations, but none came without volunteer."

When it came to choosing the Ambassadors, the Ultimate Holding Company had another surprise, receiving more than five hundred applications. "We received entries from art lovers, environmentalists, scientists, teachers and people interested in tattoos. Their ages ranged from 18 years until 60," says Kate. One candidate had planned to pass their tattoo down through the family to their children and grandchildren when they became adults. Others wanted to become an ambassador for animals with which they identified, and there were others who just thought the species were beautiful.

The tattooing happened during the last weekend of November, but the project did not end there. The activities of each volunteer began after the pain of needles. Some of them worked with organizations in preserving the environment, others visited the natural habitat of their species. Now, the Ultimate Holding Company will be touring the extInked project as a visual arts exhibition around the UK throughout 2011 - 2012 showing the current work of the Ambassadors and how they and their new tattoos impacted other people.

"For now we will work with volunteers from the UK but we would like to expand to other countries," says Kate. "Our mission is to create a worldwide network of ambassadors." Maybe someday you can just tattoo a Brazilian species at risk of extinction, and cooperate with the project.

The photographs featured in the article are:

1. Huw Spanner and the White Tailed Eagle for which he is the proud Ambassador. Photo courtesy of Andrew Firth.

2. Jai Redman, Ambassador for the Smooth Snake. Photography, Tom Bing.

3. Black Grouse Tattoo. Photography, Jai Redman.

Calling all extInked Ambassadors!

Calling out to the 100 extInked Ambassadors to get in touch if you would like to be involved in the future development of the extInked project...VERY EXCITING THNGS IN THE PIPELINE!

For more information, please send an email to kate@uhc.org.uk and put 'extInked future development' in the subject heading. Please also state which Species you are the Ambassador for and make sure your full contact details are also in the email.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,

Kate

Touring Exhibition Co-ordinator, Ultimate Holding Company

www.uhc.org.uk/extinked

Original ExtInked Drawings for Sale Online

The few remaining original drawings from the project are now for sale via the new Work For Sale section of our website. Sales of these unique drawings will contribute to the project's ongoing life, the work of the ambassadors, and UHC's ability to support them in their advocacy.

The role of an ExtInked Ambassador

Ten months have passed since the one hundred willing volunteers committed themselves to being tattooed with an image of one of the most endangered species from around the UK. Since last November our army of Ambassadors have been extremely busy working alone, in groups and with conservation groups raising money and awareness about their species, below are just a few examples of the achievements so far;

Nick Dixon - Ambassador for the Western Capercaille.

As well as visiting his species, Nick has also raised £302.00 and continues to raise awareness through his Friends of Capercaille, Manchester Branch Conservation Support Group affiliated to the RSPB (The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds), currently their are 67 members of the Friends of the Capercaille, Manchester Branch and he is eager to expand this group further.

Michelle Gillian - Ambassador for the Bottlenosed Dolphin.

Michelle is supporting her species by adopting some dolphins that inhabit the seas around Moray Firth in Scotland, through the WDCS (Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society) conservation scheme. On Sunday 26th September 2010, Michelle plans to swim one mile through the Salford Keys, she has already raised £395.00 for WDCS but is dedicated to raise more, if you wish to sponsor her please visit her jut giving donation page.

Cali Lelliott - Ambassador for the Sand Lizard.

Cali has raised over £1000.00 for the Marine Conservation Society on behalf of her species, the Sand Lizard. Cali will soon be doing a quadrant survey for reptiles as part of the NARRS (National Amphibian and Reptile Recording Scheme) survey 2010.

Congratulations to the ambassadors above and to all for supporting your species.

Please do keep UHC updated and email kate@uhc.org.uk with your activities.

Photography by Tom Bing.

Welcome to the ExtInked Blog!

The aim of this blog is to share information about the extInked project, spread the word about the hard work of the ambassadors, provide information about future projects and opportunities and communicate conservation news from around the world.

If you have any stories or information you wish to see on the blog please email me at kate@uhc.org.uk.

If you haven't done so already, you may wish to visit the extInked webpage or sign up to the facebook page.