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Dean Stalham

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dean Stalham (born c. 1963)[1] is a British self-taught artist, playwright[2] and community activist from North London. He has spent time in prison for handling stolen artworks.[3]

Stalham was born in north London and grew up in Cricklewood.[4]

Mr Stalham's police charge sheet runs to several pages. In 1980, age 17, he was found guilty of stealing a car and fined £100. In 1984 he was arrested for assault; in 1986 for carrying a knife in a public place. Then in 1994, aged 31, he was jailed for two years for conspiring to defraud banks, after police smashed his fake credit card ring which stretched from Rotterdam to Lagos.[5]

Whilst serving time in Wandsworth Prison he won a prize for his art from the Koestler Trust.[6]

He founded the Art Saves Lives community interest company[4] in 2009, which was dissolved in 2014.[7]

Theatre

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In 2010 Stalham wrote a play, God Don't Live on a Council Estate, and staged it in an old council office building in New Cross.[8] WhatsonStage.com described it as "an emotionally gripping and riveting production",[2] while theguardian.com called it "different" and "of high quality".[8]

His play, The Barred, was performed in at London's Royal Court Theatre in February 2015 and at Croydon's Fairfield Halls in July 2015.[9][10]

References

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  1. ^ Johnny McDevitt (26 September 2008). "Prison art: Art from behind closed doors | Art and design". The Guardian. Theguardian.com. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  2. ^ a b "God Don't Live on a Council Estate - Reviews - 28 Jul 2010". WhatsOnStage.com. 28 July 2010. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  3. ^ McDevitt, Johnny (9 April 2009). "Ex-thief is aiming to steal the Chelsea Flower Show". Evening Standard. London. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  4. ^ a b "Interview: Dean Stalham, Art Saves Lives". Londonist.com. 19 April 2010. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  5. ^ "Interview: This man helped me put down the gun and pick up the camera". standard.co.uk. 20 April 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  6. ^ Nick Curtis (29 July 2010). "Dean Stalham: Art saved my life - Theatre". Standard.co.uk. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  7. ^ "ART SAVES LIVES COMMUNITY INTEREST COMPANY". gov.uk. 5 November 2009. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b "The real crisis in the arts is not funding | Stage". Theguardian.com. 20 August 2014. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  9. ^ "Can the arts prevent ex-prisoners from re-offending?". BBC News Magazine. 29 May 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
  10. ^ Bouquet, Tim (10 April 2015). "Not Shut Up charity offers prison inmates a path out of their cells and into the arts world". Independent.co.uk. Retrieved 14 July 2024.