Artwork description:

School Prints revives a groundbreaking scheme set up in the 1940s to supply original, high-quality contemporary art to primary schools. Six British artists – Martin Creed, Jeremy Deller, Anthea Hamilton, Helen Marten, Haroon Mirza and Rose Wylie – have been invited to create limited edition prints that will be given to the Wakefield primary schools taking part in the scheme.

To coincide with the exhibition, we are delighted to offer for sale a series of the limited edition prints, kindly donated by the artists. All profits raised by the sales of the prints will fund a full engagement programme with the participating schools.

'I like frogs, there don’t seem to be a lot about any more. This image was triggered by a television programme on King John, who was not popularly considered a ‘good’ king at the time. The story has it that some monks decided to get rid of him by extracting poison from a frog, disguising it in wine and offering it to a travel-worn king. So this frog is both historically fixed and an example of a contemporary frog drawing, similar to that shown on the programme to catch and embody the historical fact. A suitable subject for schools... green colour for frogs, lateral politics and endangered species; with an apparently random 'King John' written into the print, but in fact there to establish connection and scholarship, and to encourage discussion.' - Rose Wylie

Featured by our Editors:

• The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2022
• The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2021
• The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2019