100%Scouse

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I derive from the word lobscouse meaning a meat stew which was commonly eaten by seamen. Lobscouse was a dish eaten by seamen throughout Northern Europe, and became popular in seaports such as Liverpool. Shortened to Scouse the name for this meat stew eventually came into common English usage to describe a resident of Liverpool.

2008 Cans of Scouse Stew  

The consensus among policy-makers has been that Liverpool needed branding and so there has been a large push to market the City as an international 'Capital of Culture'. This piece encourages the viewer into questioning and deconstructing the idea of 'Culture' and art within the context of their city being branded for a wider stage or audience. The work examines Scouse as a sign as well as logos with their mnemonic values, in this case with reference to Warhol's 200 Campbell's Soup Cans of 1962. The work expresses Liverpool's character of humour and tongue-in-cheek non-conformity.

On a deeper level the work questions how meaning is constructed and understood. In 2002 UNESCO defined Culture saying it  "should be regarded as a set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of a society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art, literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, tradition and beliefs". With historical reference to the origin of Scouse stew and its consumption by the sailors that passed through this port as well as its own people, this piece celebrates Liverpool's 'ways of living together'.

So although the question to policy-makers remains, what exactly are they selling and who is the consumer? This playful pastiche challenges our perception of identity and culture, using a potent symbol of the city, it presents it's 'Culture' back to its own people in a co-modified and branded form.  Asking us to question what is the true nature of Scouse Culture held in our collective cultural memory?

Event: Liverpool International Artists - 20.09.2008 - 15.11.2008