On 28 August 2008, Oliver Hemsley a 20-year-old student from Central St Martin’s college, was stabbed by a group of youths at least eight times in an unprovoked daylight attack on Boundry street in East London. Oliver’s heart and breathing stopped upon arrival at the Royal London Hospital, and while he was successfully resuscitated, he had to spend the next 134 days in intensive care relying on life-support machines to keep him alive.
Yet, out of this tragedy comes positive action, ‘Art Against Knives’ ; an initiative based around Oliver’s love for art and which draws public focus to the problem of knife crime. Earlier this week, the exhibition at Shoreditch Town Hall hosted a collection of photography, fashion, fine art, illustration, sculpture and installation from high profile artists such as Patrick Wolf, Vivienne Westwoood and Giles Deacon.
