Artists Sell Works For Wishes

Idris Khan and Annie Morris, who are married with two children, have created the prints especially for the charity after annual The Art of Wishes event they support had to be re-envisioned because of lockdown.

The prints will be signed, numbered and sold on the website Artsy for £500 each: https://www.artsy.net/show/make-a-wish-uk-the-art-of-wishes-the-limited-edition

Idris’s minimalist sheet music print, titled ‘Long Live Love 2020’, was made using watercolour and oil stick, with words written to form abstract rhythmical gestures that seem to float in front of the musical notes.

His previous oil, charcoal, chalk, and watercolour work ‘A Wish for Moon, Stars and Planets’ was sold in aid of the charity in 2017.

Idris said he wanted to support Make-A-Wish again because: “The charity does amazing work and gives hope to so many children who have already been through so much in their young lives. I think both images allude to a childlike drawing sensibility - free and creative movements and gestures. They feel like beautiful wishes in themselves caught on paper.”

Annie Morris’s print, titled ‘Two Trees’, meditates on the freedom and limitations of the diary as a medium for self-expression. During lockdown Annie painted daily diaries of her family’s life and anxieties, translating the symbols and marks that re-occur in her work into rhythmic, narrative drawings.

Annie sold a previous work at The Art of Wishes last year – the sculpture ‘Stack 8, Viridian Green’ - which was created to symbolise a child’s wish to go on holiday to the beach.

The Art of Wishes has raised millions of pounds for Make-A-Wish since it was founded in 2017 by philanthropist Batia Ofer who said: “We are so excited to be working with Annie Morris and Idris Khan on The Art of Wishes: The Limited Edition. I am extremely grateful for their passion and dedication in supporting the work of Make-A-Wish UK. As dear friends of The Art of Wishes, they have supported us in previous years and continue to take time out of their busy schedules to help grant life-changing wishes. This is a special partnership at a time when Make-A-Wish and their wish children need our support more than ever.”

Make-A-Wish Chief Executive Jason Suckley said: “As a result of the coronavirus, right now around 1800 children are waiting for their wish. The pandemic has also affected our ability to fundraise, so we are hugely grateful to Idris, Annie and The Art of Wishes committee for their generosity. Selling these prints will help to grant more than 40 wishes to seriously ill children who desperately need that priceless, positive experience to cherish with their families.”

Media contact

Simon Henry
Make-A-Wish UK Communications
[email protected]
07786 650922
Make-A-Wish UK, 7th Floor, Thames Tower, Station Road, Reading, RG1 1LX

For images or video footage to support this story, please contact [email protected]

About Make-A-Wish UK

Every day, the lives of 10 families in the UK are changed forever when a child is diagnosed with a serious illness. From that moment, childhood takes a backseat to medical appointments and worry. A wish helps to restore that childhood and puts worry on the backseat. It provides an opportunity to choose something positive to look forward to and the chance to be a child first and a patient second.

Make-A-Wish UK is a registered charity that was established in the UK in 1986 to support children and young people diagnosed with a serious illness or life-limiting condition, by granting them their dearest wish. The charity receives no Government funding - registered charity numbers: 295672 in England and Wales, SC037479 in Scotland.

Notes to editors

We do not use the phrase ‘terminally ill’ and ask that you follow suit because some poorly children and young people are not made aware of the exact nature of their diagnosis and we respect their family’s approach to their situation. Some also recover fully from their illness.

Please refer to us as Make-A-Wish^® UK in the first instance to distinguish us from affiliates in other countries. Thereafter ‘Make-A-Wish’ is suitable.

Please hyperlink to our website (https://www.make-a-wish.org.uk) when you mention Make-A-Wish online.

You can also find us on social media @makeawishuk