Once We Were Held

An immersive installation of sound, scent, visuals and sculpture. Inspired by the Bethany Project in Bodmin – a radical place of rest and care for people with HIV/AIDS in the 80s and 90s – Once We Were Held invites us into a space of rest, reflection and queer community.

Using reclaimed daffodils as a symbol of queer resilience, the installation connects LGBTQIA+ care with the landscapes of Cornwall.

Practicalities: The site is wheelchair accessible.

About the Artist

SHARP is a queer, working class, socially engaged artist, activist, and producer whose interdisciplinary approach incorporates experimental video, photography, sculpture, and sound installations. Their work investigates the human condition from a queer perspective, focusing on themes of remembrance from both personal and collective experiences.

Based in Cornwall, with a studio at Trewarveneth in Newlyn, SHARP works across the UK and internationally. Their artwork is represented in several private and national public collections, including Leeds Art Gallery, Bradford Museums and Galleries, and the Salford University Art Collection. Recently, SHARP received an Artist Award from the Henry Moore Foundation and, in 2024, won the overall title at The Exeter Contemporary Art Prize.

Currently, SHARP is exhibiting in the Plant Dreaming exhibition at Leeds Art Gallery and in She Sells Seashells at the Alice Austin House on Staten Island, New York. Most recent exhibitions and performances have taken place at venues such as The Loading Bay Bradford City of Culture, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Newlyn Art Gallery & The Exchange in Cornwall, The Whitaker Museum, Cartwright Hall Bradford, VOID Derry, and The Gallery 78 in Reykjavik, Iceland.

SHARP was the lead artist and creative director of the queer contemporary arts and heritage project KOMPAS with Queer Kernow and Decoder. The installation Once We Were Held was inspired by the research on this project.