Stephen Willats's Blog, page 4

Thanks 2012 – Hello 2013

stacked Gary Woodley designed bench with mirrorball in the window of CHELSEA space with Tate Britain and Millbank Tower behind

It’s time for CHELSEA space to say thank you to those who took part in our 2012 programme and to wish a Happy New Year to everyone who came to visit us.

Kate Ross (left) and Daisy McMullan in front of Daniel Sturgis's painting 'All or Nothing' 2012

It’s long overdue but we must also congratulate and introduce our most recent Research Fellows Daisy McMullan and Kate Ross. Both received awards to be with us; Daisy is our Ashley Family Foundation Fellow, whilst Kate’s award came from Chelsea Arts Club Trust. They both hit the ground running here, getting straight into the installation of  the exhibition DOME:Ralph Tubbs and The Festival of Britain, then immediately on to prepare Steve Thomas and Brad Faine’s exhibition Prints ‘R’ Us at our sister gallery Chelsea Futurespace. They finished the year working on Red White and Blue: Pop Punk Politics Place and preparing material for the 2013 programme.

Gate Theatre programme for their 'Aftermath' season directed by Christopher Haydon

As well as the CHELSEA space and Chelsea Futurespace programmes, Daisy and Kate are also working on a shortlist for our new offsite partnership with the Gate Theatre, Notting Hill. The plan is to create a programme of emerging artists making work in response to the script and research materials for each Gate production to be exhibited in the entrance area of the theatre. Daisy and Kate are also busy with projects outside of the aegis of CHELSEA space: Kate Ross has been curating the Chelsea Salon Series working with MA students and alumni of Chelsea College of Art and Design, and with her blog Curatorial Curiosities whilst Daisy McMullan has recently curated the Young Masters Art Prize at the Sphinx Gallery aimed at emerging and established artists who are inspired by the Old Masters and art history. Daisy has also recently published her essay The Archive and the Museum: Framing Contemporary Practice in the journal Engage .

Ashley Family Foundation Research Fellows: Manca Bajec and Daisy McMullan

CHELSEA space would also like to thank the outgoing Research Fellows, Manca Bajec and Caitlin Smyth. Manca has been a great asset to CHELSEA space and was particularly instrumental in ensuring the success of our exhibition Neue Slowenische Kunst 1984-1992 liaising with our partners in Ljubljana and with Tate Modern and Calvert 22 in London. Manca is currently working on some new research around contemporary monuments. Our exhibition Neue Slowenische Kunst 1984-1992 has found a new form opening under the title The Sovenian Box curated by Michele Drascek at Stacion in Prishtina, Kosova.

Caitlin Smyth with Bruce Mclean during the installation of Ideal Home at CHELSEA space in 2011

Caitlin Smyth ended her time at CHELSEA space organising an exhibition at Testbed entitled Blood In My Eyes concerning Ana Maria Velez Wood’s 1993 photographs of Bob Dylan. With a background in dance, Caitlin, who is now working in freelance curating, PR, and events organising, has a particular penchant for exhibitions crossing art, design, and popular culture so CHELSEA space suited her very well. The exhibitions Ideal Home, Lloyd Johnson: The Modern Outfitter, and Red White and Blue: Pop Punk Politics Place were definitely Caitlin’s kind of shows whilst the choreography of Anna Manubens rehearsed by  Aurea Romero for our exhibition Peter Downsborough: And Here + A Place To Be encouraged her to collaborate with the artist Rosie Farrell, choreographing and performing for Farrell’s recent film installations such as UN-Heaven’s Gate 2012.

Amelia Pica 'Some of That Colour' 2009 from the exhibition With Words Like Smoke at CHELSEA space in 2010

We were delighted to see that Modern Art Oxford currently has a string of connections back to CHELSEA space. Amelia Pica, who showed with us in With Words Like Smoke curated by Isobel Harbison, is showing in Modern Art Oxford’s Upper Gallery, Foyer Gallery,  and Yard until 10th February whilst Julian Wild, who was selected by CHELSEA space Director Donald Smith for a Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea/Chelsea Arts Club Trust Studio Award, is showing in their Project Space.

Photo: Gilbert & George/Photo: André Cadere from the exhibition 'Dear Lynda..' at CHELSEA space

Meanwhile in Modern Art Oxford’s John Piper Gallery, Lynda Morris has curated Documenting Cadere: 1972-1978. André  Cadere was best known for his Barres de Bois Rond  constructed from round coloured discs made into a pole that he carried wherever he went. In homage to this work, Lynda Morris, who was celebrated in the exhibition Lynda Morris: Dear Lynda… at CHELSEA space this year, has organised a recreation of her 1976 Slade Association Cadere events – one on Wednesday 19th December at The Plough, 21 Museum Street, London WC1 from 7-8pm, and another on Thursday 20th December at The Jeremy Bentham 31 University Street, London WC1 from 7-8pm.

Sturtevant 'Blow Job' (2006) video still cam 1

SECONDEDITIONS 'Josef Hartwig and Oskar Schlemmer - Jointed Doll 1923' (2002-2013)

CHELSEA space reopens on 22nd January with the private view of  second reflection / symmetrical contents  STURTEVANT and SECONDEDITIONS. Thank you for supporting us in 2012 and we look forward to seeing you in the new year!

Elizabeth Price Turner Prize win + Mark Titchner, Black Sabbath, & Samuel Beckett. The last week of Red White and Blue

Elizabeth Price 'Monument to Dematerialisation' 2006 from the exhibition The Affirmation at CHELSEA space

Congratulations to Elizabeth Price on winning the Turner Prize at Tate Britain. Elizabeth, who featured in CHELSEA space #17, The Affirmation , gave a short but perfectly pitched speech remembering the late Mike Stanley and quietly sending the message to the Government and the State Secretary for Education Michael Gove that she would not have pursued a successful career as an artist had it not been for a strong arts curriculum at school and a free education at art school. The importance of funding for the arts and arts education was also the theme of the speeches by Director of Tate Britain, Penelope Curtis and the presenter of the Prize, the actor Jude Law.

flyer for the Chelsea 'Teach In' protest at the 2010 Turner Prize

Penelope Curtis recalled the ‘Teach in’ anti-budget cuts protest by staff and students of Chelsea College of Art and Design and other colleges at the 2010 Turner Prize, covered in our Blog at that time, and reiterated the need to continue the fight for Government financial backing in the arts.

Mark Titchner N(I)B 2011

2006 Turner prize nominee Mark Titchner is currently featured in Red White and Blue at CHELSEA space. His film N(I)B was originally commissioned for his one person show Be True To Your Oblivion at New Art Gallery Walsall in 2011.

Mark Titchner N(I)B 2011

The film is a video portrait of  Nicholas Bullen, founding member and singer with the Grindcore band, Naipalm Death. N(I)B presents us with a close up of Bullen’s mouth as he performs a work by Titchner, the work combines a list of the 200 words banned by Local Government associations which are transformed through the use of a Gematria Calculator which gives numerical value to words and phrases. The LGA banned words include ‘actioned’, ‘ambassador’, ‘core value’, ‘functionality’, and ‘sustainable communities’ amongst others – a strange and intriguing list!  Titchner’s mesmerising, slowed down, silent piece, with its references to  subversive music and political correctness, is at the heart of the themes of Red White and Blue.

Billy Whitelaw performing Samuel Beckett's 'Not I' for a 1975 BBC TV production reprising her 1973 Royal Court performance

The title ‘N(I)B refers to the Black Sabbath song of the same name and to the BBC film of actor Billie Whitelaw’s performance of Samuel Beckett’s ‘Not I’  where the camera focuses exclusively on the exaggerated movements of her mouth.

Samuel Beckett's 'Not I' (left) as part of the exhibition 'Rehearsing/Samuel Beckett' at CHELSEA space

Beckett’s nephew, the musician Edward Beckett, kindly gave us permission to show ‘Not I’ as part of our exhibition Rehearsing/Samuel Beckett in 2006.

Mark Titchner with his work Ur Text and Marcel Duchamp's Rotoreliefs at CHELSEA space in 2007

Mark Titchner contemplates his film N(I)B and Derek Jarman's 'Jordan's Dance' at CHELSEA space in 2012

Titchner had previously evoked Black Sabbath in the exhibition Vertigo:Marcel Duchamp and Mark Titchner where he explained that, although he recognised the importance of Marcel Duchamp, his own introduction to roto-scopic art came when he bought a secondhand copy of Black Sabbath’s 1971 album, Master of Reality, on the Vertigo Records label who’s logo graphic was a pastiche of a Duchamp Rotorelief. Titchner’s film ‘The Artist’s Studio’ made for Vertigo  at CHELSEA space was reshown as a projection in our exhibition Ideal Home in 2011.

framed vertigo record (left) next to Paul Tickell's 'Punk and the Pistols' and Pil and Galia Kollectiv's 'WE'

The framed vinyl record on the Vertigo label has reappeared in our current exhibition Red White and Blue: Pop Punk Politics Place.

Michael Bracewell in front of Daniel Sturgis's painting at CHELSEA space

Michael Bracewell who wrote an excellent text for our Red White and Blue  publication came to visit CHELSEA space this week. Happily, he liked the show and thought it would be regarded as a “significant bench mark”.

Nicky Carvell 'Hemel 17'

He was particularly taken by the hanging of the main space  containing works by Daniel Sturgis, Simon Periton, Neil Clements and Nicky Carvell.

Ignite nightclub Hemel Hempstead photographed by Paul Ryan

Nicky Carvell’s piece, Hemel 17, includes a large photograph of the Ignite nightclub, a seemingly corrugated industrial shed with a postmodern “classical” facade. On a recent visit to Hemel Hempstead artist and theorist Paul Ryan recognised Ignite after seeing the Nicky Carvell piece at CHELSEA space and took this photograph to show us how it has been repainted since Nicky’s work was made. Paul says the club is in a retail centre called ‘Jarman Park’ adding an ” odd extra connection with the works in your show” referring to Derek Jarman’s super 8 film ‘Jordan’s Dance’ 1977.

Left: Mark Titchner N(I)B 2011. Right: Derek Jarman 'Jordan's dance' 1977

Red White and Blue: Pop Punk Politics Place  ends at CHELSEA space this Saturday -8th December- at 4pm. Don’t miss it!