{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O1786841"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1786841/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2024NX7898/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2024NX7898/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"high","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2024NX7898","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2024NX7903","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2024NX7895","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":{"_iiif_pres":"https://iiif.vam.ac.uk/collections/O1786841/manifest.json","_alt_iiif_pres":[]}},"record":{"systemNumber":"O1786841","accessionNumber":"S.525-2025","objectType":"Guitar","titles":[{"title":"Guitar owned by Joan Armatrading","type":""}],"summaryDescription":"Joan Armatrading (born 1950) is a British-West Indian singer, songwriter, musician and producer. After moving to England from St Kitts at the age of 7, she began learning to play the piano and guitar. She soon progressed to writing her own songs and performing in local concerts. Armatrading released her debut album, <i>Whatever’s for Us</i>, in 1972. Her third self-titled album of 1976 included the highly popular single ‘Love and Affection’. \n\r\nArmatrading’s music ranges across genres including folk, blues, soul and rock, and she has become one of Britain’s most prolific recording artists. She has released 21 studio albums and four live albums, winning an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contemporary Song Collection in 1996 and three Grammy nominations. She was awarded an MBE (2001) and CBE (2020) for her contribution to music and social activism.  \n\r\nThis guitar is the first guitar owned by Armatrading and the first on which she learned to play. It was exchanged for two old prams in a pawn shop by her mother when Armatrading was aged 14. \n\r\nIt is likely that the neck of the guitar was removed and reattached before it came into Armatrading’s possession, with the strings sitting a significant height from the fretboard. This detail makes Armatrading’s feat of learning to play on this instrument even more remarkable. \r\n","physicalDescription":"A small, brown acoustic guitar. The wooden body has been sanded down and is scratched. The neck and fret board are black with white tuning pegs. 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