WHAT better use of Exhibition Square in York than to exhibit your artistic wares there while working on a new piece?

Under a new scheme set up by York memorial artist Dexter and art-promotion stalwart Chalky The Yorkie with the backing of City of York Council, this is now possible.

“We’ve come up with something called eAsely Accessable, an artists’ exhibition service that, with permission from the council, places easels in strategic places in the city centre and gives artists, photographers, 2D creatives and even poets the chance to rent easel time by the hour and exhibit and promote direct to the public,” says Dexter.

The scheme with the punning title – a combination of easel, easily accessible and able to access art – was launched this week when York artist Horius exhibited two works on easels provided by another outlet for York’s artists, Bar Lane Studios.

Horius could be watched working on his Caran d’Ache “skuff cards” at a coffee table placed outside York Art Gallery on Wednesday morning. At first, this location might be considered provocative as the gallery powers are not noted for exhibiting new works by York artists – although a Mark Hearld print was presented to the gallery by the Friends of York Art Gallery earlier this month. (See below) Please note, however, that Exhibition Square was suggested by City of York Council. “We took the idea to Penny Chaplin, the council’s city-centre events manager in Silver Street, about eight weeks ago and what we put to her was this idea of renting easel time in strategic locations,” recalls Dexter.

“We suggested Parliament Street and possibly near the Minster as we felt the sight of artists with their easels in the city centre would promote the idea of York as an artistic city, and Penny said, ‘What about Exhibition Square?’.”

Why not indeed! “There was no formal co-ordination between the council and the gallery, but out of courtesy we went to see Laura Turner, the curator of art at York Art Gallery, and she was very welcoming of the idea,” says Dexter.

Dexter himself had first tested the waters three years ago when the city-centre manager let him exhibit one of his 20th century memorial works on the city streets. “They allowed me to play recordings from the featured decade and to put my hat down as an experiment to see if you could busk art – and by the end there was £11 in my hat and a couple of indirect sales,” he says.

“But most importantly, there was an ongoing contact with the public, who were sitting with their sandwiches having a conversation with me about how I made my works – and for a conceptual artist that’s crucial, as you normally can’t get such feedback.”

For Horius, projects such as 2009’s Art Warehouse run by Chalky at Pine & Oak Interiors in Piccadilly and now eAsely Accessable are essential to spread the word.

“Basically the key thing you’re looking for as an artist is the chance to exhibit so that the public recognises there are not just the main galleries in the city but local artists too and ultimately we want to have better communication between the two,” he says. “I’ve been here for 15 years and still not got a foot in the door at the city galleries – and we do feel patronised at times.”

“But you can’t get closer to the door than being outside York Art Gallery, by the fountain, exhibiting in Exhibition Square,” chips in Chalky.

Dexter looks back to an earlier time of artistic expression on the streets. “In the Fifties and Sixties, paintings were exhibited on railings and easels in Exhibition Square, in keeping with the name – and you don’t get a name like that in the first place without art being shown!”

Dexter and Chalky are now on the lookout for “local, mainly amateur creators who will find it helpful to discover what the public really thinks of their work for as little as £20”. “It could be a talented young artist brought to our attention by a community worker or it could be an 82-year-old woman in a nursing home,” says Dexter.

Easel time can be rented by the hour for the aforementioned £20 or three hours for £45. “It’s your chance to get into conversation with the viewing public about your work, hand out info about yourself, have a photo taken for your CV and maybe indirectly sell your art,” says Chalky, who can be contacted on 07861 277337 or by email sent to chalkytheyorkie@hotmail.com.

Alternatively, anyone interested in exhibiting can ring Dexter on 07714 902007. “Our aim is to make York look more arty,” he says. “eAsely Accessable represents cutting-edge art tourism.”

Chalky concurs. “Our scheme is a way of engaging with the public and in the long run I have this idea of art tourism for York, where people will come to the city expressly to see the art here,” he says.

“What we’d like to do ultimately is apply for funding to support this scheme, so that artists at places like the Space 109 community arts centre in Walmgate could benefit from it, but first we must dip our toe in the water to see if eAsely Accessable is successful. If it is, then we’ll look for a patron or funding from the city council or county council.”