The Return of the Jump Ship Rat!

By Colin Serjent

The Jump Ship Rat gallery will be re-launched during the 2004 Liverpool Arts Biennial.

Forced to vacate their former premises on Parr Street at the end of 2002, they have now moved to a large warehouse on Greenland Street, off Jamaica Street, which used to house a blade factory.

"We will remain very independent and underground," said co-director Myriam Tahir, and continue as an alternative venue offering a very diverse range of exhibitions, music, theatre, poetry, etc. After leaving Parr Street," she added, "it took us 18 months of research before deciding on moving into our new space."

"It is an ideal area, called the Baltic Triangle," stated fellow director Ben Parry, who along with Tahir and Caf run the organisation. "It is full of empty warehouses from a bygone era and is the last industrial enclave of Liverpool city centre. We wanted a more permanent base and with more access to regular funding. The space is of such a size," he believes, "that we could accommodate two large-scale exhibitions running there at the same time."

The concept and philosophy of Jump Ship Rat derived from a visit that Tahir and Parry made to Paris, where they visited a squat, which was also used as an art space. "This type of art squat was very popular in Paris during the 1990s," commented Tahir. "The idea behind it triggered off the whole concept of Jump Ship Rat."

The launch of the new look Jump Ship Rat takes place on 18 September, at the beginning of the Biennial, with an exhibition called 'Streets of Desire'. Among those involved in the exhibition are four artists from Colombia.

"We met a lot of talented Colombian artists when we visited the country" said Myriam. "Art is part of their everyday culture with artists being very supportive of each other. Colombian artists are very politically aware, honest and open with each other, unlike British artists who tend to be introspective."

Jump Ship Rat welcome proposals for gigs, exhibitions, theatre productions, poetry, workshops, etc.
E-mail: info@jumpshiprat.org