Smart art vending machines

John Hayward

It's one of the art world's best kept secrets, a national network of vending machines selling artworks in little yellow cardboard boxes. Artist John Hayward found an old vending machine in a skip and thought, "I can sell art in that". It wasn't long before he was running around encouraging other artists to make work "for the machine".
"I called it Hayvend, a play on may own name. My grandfather Hayward used to sell hay in London, on the Haymarket I think, and used to have a night box for the late coaches to feed their horses. They would leave a penny for a bushel of hay in the box, like a kind of vending machine. So I guess I could say this project is really in my blood. I like the idea that people might think that these vending machines might sell hay, never knowingly understood - l think that is what art is all about"
Hayvend recently featured No.7 in Vogue's "definitive top 100: the trends, the people, the places", alongside Elton John! The original machine that was found in that skip, is now on display at the Courtauld Institute, having been included in the East Wing Collection for two years. It has the original paint and artwork, a working work of art. It's one of twenty Hayvend machines that can be found in London and across the UK.
In early December John Hayward will be speaking during an At Abrahams seminar and he will be launching his manifesto for Hayvend, "I have a vision, that all of us have the seed of creativity in us, we all have dreams, we all have ideas, we all have stories. In these crazy, uncertain times, we need more than ever to be creative, to make the world beautiful".

John spoke at "AtAbrahams" on the 6th December 2006, St Aloysius Social Club, London.