UPHOLD began in 2021 as our response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the visual arts sector in Northern Ireland. We wanted to develop a project that could support and encourage our community, acknowledging the vibrant spectrum of incredible visual artists based in the region and address the lack of commercial opportunity for contemporary artists.

We commissioned our longtime collaborators NONGRAPHIC, a branding and graphic design studio, to design the UPHOLD website. This not-for-profit online platform promotes and sells work by contemporary artists in Northern Ireland.

Household commissions artists to create new editions for the website which are sold, alongside existing works, on a non-profit basis, with 80% of the proceeds going to the artists and 20% reinvested back into the UPHOLD project. To date, the website has sold hundreds of works by over 40 Northern Ireland-based artists.

The website launched in June 2021 and was developed through funding received via the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Department for Communities Stability and Renewal Programme for Organisations.