TWO local men who were crowned winners of a new BBC art competition series are hoping to open an art gallery in West Belfast.
Gavin Burns and Liam Martin scooped £50,000 in art during last Wednesday night's grand final of The Big Deal with Steph McGovern.
The BBC One series saw would-be dealers battle it out in the competitive world of temporary art.
In a nail-biting final, Gavin and Liam took on South Londoners Charles and Darren in the final deal – pitching a six-figure piece of art at the Frieze Sculpture outdoor exhibition in Regent’s Park to a group of industry experts.
Series mentor Cordelia de Freitas had the difficult task of choosing the overall winner and crowned Gavin and Liam as winners. They received £50,000 worth of art – six separate pieces.
Speaking to the Andersonstown News, they explained how they got involved in the series.
Gavin said: "I saw it online and applied. The next day I got a phone call to jump on a Zoom and we ended up going to London to do auditions.
"We ended up getting casted for it."
Liam added: "We had zero experience of art before. The only art we saw was walking down the road and seeing the murals or graffiti.
"Every episode we learnt so much from the judges and the mentors. We were like fish out of water and trying to learn and adapt along the way.
"We were really bad at the start and thought we would be eliminated after the first challenge."
Following their success Gavin and Liam say their dream is now to open up an art gallery in West Belfast.
"I have never walked around art galleries before. The series has definitely changed my opinion on art. Art isn’t for the older generation and the educated – it is for everyone," added Gavin.
"The mission we are on now is to open an art gallery in West Belfast. We are planning on organising a pop-up gallery hopefully next month to try and showcase some work from local artists," added Liam.
All episodes of 'The Big Deal with Steph McGovern' are available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
