Artist's £1 million giveaway

ONE thousand artworks worth an estimated £1million will be scattered across the streets of London tonight for the public to take free.

In one of the biggest street art exhibitions the capital has seen, Adam Neate will distribute the paintings from 8pm across all 33 local authorities.

The 31-year-old artist said the A3 size works will be left at landmarks as well as in "nooks and crannies" and he does not expect them to be found until tomorrow morning.

Neate, from West Ham, has been involved in similar projects before. "In the past I've given away around 1,000 of my paintings each year so 1,000 on one night is a big task," he said. "This has always been a dream of mine to do an exhibition across London."

Neate will join a team of 20 in distributing the autographed printed works, which all feature the same image but have a different combination of printing and stamping.

In recent years his work has featured in Elms Lesters Painting Rooms in the West End where his pieces have fetched up to £43,000 each.

But his roots lie in creating paintings and sculptures designed for towns and cities. Neate said: "I first began giving away my artwork when I lived in Ipswich eight years ago. I painted quite a lot and had so many in my flat I just decided to put them out on the street for people to take.

"When I moved to London, I did the same thing on a bigger scale. It's like a surreal gallery."

The former internet designer, who now paints full-time, added: "Art should be a gift, free and fun for people to enjoy. That's what this project aims to achieve. I hope people take them home, but whatever they want to do with the works is their own business."

Neate's street art pieces are selling at auctions for between £2,000 and £15,000. His paintings use recycled cardboard boxes as canvases and have been acclaimed for their complex layering and bold use of paint.