Reciprocal Exchange - A Community Art Project

Tuesday 25th – Sunday 30th March - The Setting Gallery, Three Storeys, Nailsworth, GL6 0JE. Open Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 4pm, Sunday 10am to 3pm.

What happens when we take money out of the equation?

Studying part-time for a Master’s in Fine Art with Falmouth university, this project is Ben Welch’s response to a module about collaboration.

“I started with a simple question: what happens when we take money out of the equation? I’ve always been interested in the ways art circulates, who gets to own it, who gets to engage with it, and what we actually mean when we talk about "value."

Initially toying with the idea of asking artists to give their work away for free, the idea of exchange kept coming up, not just as a transaction but as something more human about trust, negotiation, and shared experience.

At its core, this isn’t just a community event; it is a work of art in itself. Every exchange that takes place, every negotiation between artist and participant becomes part of the piece, a tiny performance of creativity and connection.

By inviting people to offer skills, time, or handmade items instead of money, the project challenges traditional ideas of what art is "worth." It’s about breaking down barriers, making art feel more accessible, and seeing what happens when we shift the focus from ownership to interaction.

The social aspect is just as important as the objects being exchanged. The event is shaped by the people who take part their contributions, their offers, their stories. In that sense, it aligns with ideas of relational aesthetics, where the meaning of the work emerges through human interaction.

More than anything, this is an attempt to blur the lines between artist and audience, artwork and exchange, exhibition and experience. It’s an experiment in generosity, a creative intervention into everyday life, and a way of questioning how we relate to art, and to each other.