I'M IN KOREA!
click on the link and you will be transported to my blog about living in korea.
Monday, 2 May 2011
At the moment I've been asked to do an exhibition for the John Ryland's library about Robert Donat. It's been a great experience and I've loved looking through the archives, something I've wanted to do for a long time. It goes up the 9th of May for a few months and then will go back up after a major exhibition about King James Bible comes down. I'm also meeting his family! What a privilege, to meet the people I'm writing about, who I'm researching. The objects I finally picked out included-
- An old homemade pamphlet that Donat made when he was a young boy. So cute!
- Vintage posters from his early performances
- Lovely letters from Donat to his family. So tender and beautiful!
- Writing about when he was young and the wonderful innocence of youth.
Friday, 1 April 2011
Review of the exhibition!
Exhibition Review: No Offence Intended
Showcasing the work of seven Manchester-based artists, No Offence Intended, the latest external exhibition at BLANKSPACE, explores similarities between religious rituals and artistic practices. Robin Macdonald went along to find out more.
As I ascend the stairs to visit the latest exhibition at BLANKSPACE, Blank Media Collective’s creative hub, the Muslim ‘call to prayer’ (Adham) echoes around the bare, white walls of the exhibition space. This sound piece is the first part of artist Runa Begum’s installation, No Two Men Sound the Same and seems to be inviting me in, urging me to contemplate the artists’ work.
No Offence Intended explores the ways in which spectators are conditioned to experience gallery spaces in much the same way as religious people experience sacred spaces. The exhibiting artists use installation, sculpture, video, and performance in order to examine their own relationships with faith and the ways in which this affects their world view.
The variety of multi-sensory installations stands as testament to the diversity of practice, meaning, and expression in the exhibiting artists’ work. Begum’s No Two Men Sound the Same invites the visitor to engage with religious sounds and their meanings. The second part of this installation takes place in a darkened room where the artists’ voice whispers the fajar prayer (the dawn prayer); and the presence of a compass pointing east towards Mecca impresses upon the viewer the position of prayer and its importance. Indeed, the tranquillity of this darkened space prompts the individual to ponder the meanings of faith and prayer in both the artist’s life and in their own.
Kay Woodley’s video projection, My Morning Routine gives the viewer a highly-personal insight into the daily rituals of the artist. The work couples video sequences of early morning household scenes with sound recordings giving life to the video’s unmoving objects. Although the artist is never seen, visual and aural clues provide insight into her personality. The video ends with a shot of the inside of the artist’s front door. We do not see the artist leave but we hear the door open and then close before the sound of her footsteps retreating into the distance. Yet, once she has gone, the house remains silent. This prompts the spectator to consider the role of individuals in the creation of sacred rituals and spaces.
Leaving the exhibition, I feel slightly puzzled by its provocative title. I am not offended, or even mildly irritated, by the gallery’s content. Yet, I am left with a genuine feeling of insight into the artists’ practices and beliefs. Their subtle evocations of the sacred – in its various forms – demonstrate that art doesn’t need to provoke in order to be emotive. As I reflect upon this, I can’t help but feel that I’ve been duped; perhaps there really was no offence intended.
Robin Macdonald
The exhibition was running at BLANKSPACE throughout March. For more information on Blank Media Collective visit their website by clicking here
As I ascend the stairs to visit the latest exhibition at BLANKSPACE, Blank Media Collective’s creative hub, the Muslim ‘call to prayer’ (Adham) echoes around the bare, white walls of the exhibition space. This sound piece is the first part of artist Runa Begum’s installation, No Two Men Sound the Same and seems to be inviting me in, urging me to contemplate the artists’ work.
No Offence Intended explores the ways in which spectators are conditioned to experience gallery spaces in much the same way as religious people experience sacred spaces. The exhibiting artists use installation, sculpture, video, and performance in order to examine their own relationships with faith and the ways in which this affects their world view.
The variety of multi-sensory installations stands as testament to the diversity of practice, meaning, and expression in the exhibiting artists’ work. Begum’s No Two Men Sound the Same invites the visitor to engage with religious sounds and their meanings. The second part of this installation takes place in a darkened room where the artists’ voice whispers the fajar prayer (the dawn prayer); and the presence of a compass pointing east towards Mecca impresses upon the viewer the position of prayer and its importance. Indeed, the tranquillity of this darkened space prompts the individual to ponder the meanings of faith and prayer in both the artist’s life and in their own.
Kay Woodley’s video projection, My Morning Routine gives the viewer a highly-personal insight into the daily rituals of the artist. The work couples video sequences of early morning household scenes with sound recordings giving life to the video’s unmoving objects. Although the artist is never seen, visual and aural clues provide insight into her personality. The video ends with a shot of the inside of the artist’s front door. We do not see the artist leave but we hear the door open and then close before the sound of her footsteps retreating into the distance. Yet, once she has gone, the house remains silent. This prompts the spectator to consider the role of individuals in the creation of sacred rituals and spaces.
Leaving the exhibition, I feel slightly puzzled by its provocative title. I am not offended, or even mildly irritated, by the gallery’s content. Yet, I am left with a genuine feeling of insight into the artists’ practices and beliefs. Their subtle evocations of the sacred – in its various forms – demonstrate that art doesn’t need to provoke in order to be emotive. As I reflect upon this, I can’t help but feel that I’ve been duped; perhaps there really was no offence intended.
Robin Macdonald
The exhibition was running at BLANKSPACE throughout March. For more information on Blank Media Collective visit their website by clicking here
Sunday, 20 March 2011
Saturday, 12 March 2011
no offence intended exhibition
at last, i'm doing something creative and not essay based. i feel like all i'm doing is reading, writing, reading writing and no time to let GO. i can't wait to go back into the gallery space and play around.my whole piece is intertwined with a recent holiday to japan, where we queued up to get into a shrine, we waited for what seemed like hours. the piece is very calming, very enlightening (whatever that means, my philosophy module is slowly taking over everything i do, and everything i think) and purely visual, if a work can be purely visual. pictures will be up soon or he work taking place, and hopefully in the next few days i'll get some blogs in about development and what mishaps i get up to, which will hopefully be nil (but most likely be a million)
at last, i'm doing something creative and not essay based. i feel like all i'm doing is reading, writing, reading writing and no time to let GO. i can't wait to go back into the gallery space and play around.my whole piece is intertwined with a recent holiday to japan, where we queued up to get into a shrine, we waited for what seemed like hours. the piece is very calming, very enlightening (whatever that means, my philosophy module is slowly taking over everything i do, and everything i think) and purely visual, if a work can be purely visual. pictures will be up soon or he work taking place, and hopefully in the next few days i'll get some blogs in about development and what mishaps i get up to, which will hopefully be nil (but most likely be a million)
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Best Idea Ever.
This is the best idea for anyone who is normal and doesn't have enough money to travel the world; a personal, up close look at some of the greatest museums in the world. No interruptions, no invigilators whispering 'no photgraphy' in your ears, no tourists. Just you and the picture.
Friday, 5 November 2010
More news reports!
Wrong time but whatever.
This is the cake that was kindly donated from PARKLIFE, Worthing for tomorrow. eee!
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