A Brighton gallery has turned to crowdfunding to raise the £20,000 that it urgently needs to stay open.
And within the first fortnight of its campaign Fabrica is almost three quarters of the way there, with more than £14,000 pledged as more than 260 donors offer support.
But the gallery, based in the old Holy Trinity Church, in Duke Street, in the corner of Ship Street, Brighton, is still looking for at least £5,000 more in the coming few weeks.
The crowdfunding comes as Fabrica prepares to host Life Model II, the Turner Prize shortlisted sculpture by David Shrigley, the guest director of the Brighton Festival this year.
On its financial position, Fabrica said: “A year ago, we lost a regular £20,000 grant from Brighton and Hove City Council as a result of local funding cuts.
“We’ve tried our best to come back from this but we haven’t been able to adjust fast enough to make up for the loss.
“We now urgently need to raise £20,000 to keep Fabrica going.
“We’ve been at the heart of the community for 22 years and a lot of people rely on us.
“We provide opportunities for 200 volunteers each year and development, advice and resources for hundreds of artists.
“The activities we offer at, and beyond, the gallery are often a way out of social isolation for low-income families, vulnerable older people and people with learning disabilities.
“We don’t want to cut any of our vital work. We’ve absorbed some of the grant loss by making a member of staff redundant – a very tough decision.
“We’re also working hard to make more money out of hiring out our beautiful historic venue, and that’s going well – but we need your help now to bridge this funding gap.
“If we don’t manage this, we will have to cut some of the activities that people can access for free or at low cost.
So does this mean that as Director of the Festival he is being paid to display his own work, and being crowd funded?
Rolivan: No. The crowd funding is to keep the gallery open. Fabrica and the Brighton Festival are separate organisations.