Smart meter inspiration for latest collection by Sir Peter Blake

Sir Peter Blake has revealed his latest and perhaps most surprising art collection, inspired by the arrival of smart meters to every home in Great Britain.
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The Arrival of Smart Meters has been unveiled at the White Cloth Gallery in Leeds to coincide with the roll-out of 53 million new smart meters in the UK.

The Government has pledged to install a smart meter in every household across the nation by 2020.

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The British pop artist, who is best known for co-designing the sleeve of The Beatles album Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, said he was inspired by the latest work of artist Saul Steinberg, “who gave new meaning to every day objects”.

Sir Peter said: “In this case, the smart meters suggested little bodies to me, so I turned them into people - symbolising the installers who are fitting the meters into every home in Great Britain.

“I love that something that can be seen as rather workaday is being introduced with art, and Arrival of the Smart Meters is an interesting way of highlighting its national significance.”

Smart meters have been hailed as the new generation of gas and electricity meters, as they show how much energy a household is using in pounds and pence in order to bring an end to estimated bills.

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Sir Peter has followed in the footsteps of Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy by using gas and electricity meters as the subject matter for his work.

Duffy’s piece was written to cover the digital switchover from analogue to smart meters.

In November last year, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performed a three-minute piece of music entitled A Requiem For Meters, using instruments made from old gas and electricity meters.

Sacha Deshmukh, chief executive of Smart Energy GB, said: “It’s fantastic that one of our greatest living artists has brought smart meters and the smart meter rollout to life in this way.

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“And I’m delighted that he has included the real heroes of the rollout - the installers, who are travelling up and down the country to fit millions of smart meters in homes across Great Britain.”

More than four million smart meters have already been installed across Britain.

The Arrival of the Smart Meters is being exhibited at the White Cloth Gallery in Leeds from November 23 to December 11.

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