Collaborative Projects
Since working in theatre I've always valued collaboration and for me over the years that has taken many different forms - from at one end of the scale working on something alone and asking a fellow artist or friend to take an position on what I am showing them through to large collaborations such as The Artists Occupation in Bristol in 2005 which had about 25 people collaboration of which there were around 19 artists.
On my specific collaborations with Terry Flaxton: We've worked in whatever role the other needs and Terry is currently acting as my producer on my project Re-Formation. I have previously worked in a variety of roles with him, including producer, art director or fabricator on Terry's In Other People's Skins and The Intersection Of Dreams (see below).
In the making of my Re-Formations Site specific Church installations (both Large and Small) I will be aided by Terry as producer as we've been working together a long time in these kind of spaces and together understand the requirements. At the end of 2024 I am currently in conversation with St John's in Glastonbury with a site specific research project for 2025 putting on the first iteration of the wrapped column project.
On my specific collaborations with Terry Flaxton: We've worked in whatever role the other needs and Terry is currently acting as my producer on my project Re-Formation. I have previously worked in a variety of roles with him, including producer, art director or fabricator on Terry's In Other People's Skins and The Intersection Of Dreams (see below).
In the making of my Re-Formations Site specific Church installations (both Large and Small) I will be aided by Terry as producer as we've been working together a long time in these kind of spaces and together understand the requirements. At the end of 2024 I am currently in conversation with St John's in Glastonbury with a site specific research project for 2025 putting on the first iteration of the wrapped column project.
Re: Formation - smaller installations - local churches - 2025 onwards
2025: An example of a smaller version of Re: Formation which are intended for churches as opposed to Cathedrals and they are site-specific installations in the sense they respond to the specific layout of a variety of small churches in the South West of England.
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Outside: Inside 2017 - 2018
Outside Inside 2017 - 2018
In 2018 I and Terry Flaxton RWA gathered together a group of Artists including Bron Bradshaw RWA several performers and singers including the Cellist Emily Burridge, to formulate a work called Outside:Inside. This was concerned with our world being gradually ruined by human occupation. Initially we were going to take this into an open space one Summer's evening (and we may well still do this) but the Red Brick Building Space near Street in Somerset became available - and knowing English weather, we decided to take our work "Outside" inside. |
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The Red Brick Space had a peculiar problem which was a set of pillars in its centre and so I designed a way that two audiences looking at two screens both facing in the opposite direction to view those screens (Imagine two trains passing and you'll get the idea). The performers were placed between the two audiences and the video to the right gives an idea of what we did. It begins with my suggestion of using the Ogham prehistoric alphabet which being close to Old Welsh, I then asked my then 91 year old mother, a Welsh Speaker, to speak the names of trees so that the audience might then imitate her and so learn some of the Ogham Script - later I was to make a book of Ogham which you can find here. I also filled the space with 7 foot long scrolls suspended from the ceiling.
In Other People's Skins 1993 - 2023
In Other People's Skins (1993 - 2023)
I was asked by Terry to Art Direct the colour palette for the various dinner parties for In Other People's Skins - in consultation with the communities talking part, this was first created in1993, which then went through many other iterations and reinventions and we eventually took this to a variety of places in Somerset and Bristol, then to cathedrals in the UK: Gloucester, Southwark, Wells, Worcester, Bristol, Winchester, plus Bath Abbey and Southwell Minster and on to Vasteras Cathedral in Sweden, Xi'an Academy of Fine Art in China, then Italy, New York three times. We learnt a lot in setting this work up in different places with different crews. |
The Intersection of Dreams 2010 - 2018
Terry and I also worked together on Terry's Intersection of Dreams where I designed a 30 foot high cross to suspend young people from. The first iteration of this was in Bristol Cathedral where we had fabricated a cabinet which opened regularly on the hour with screens on the two die doors so that it performed a triptych for 30 minutes before again closing.
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To Stand and Stare: A Somerset Landscape 2011 - 2020
A real benefit of working with other artists is the cross fertilisation in your own work. Plus, as Terry is a Moving Image Artist we worked together (after I'd won a 38k Heritage Lottery Award) on a large project which visited 4 locations in Somerset (including Bath Museum of Work and Glastonbury Abbey) - and all of the 25 hours of oral histories we shot were added into a one hour piece of Video Art called To Stand and Stare: A Somerset Landscape.
Then recently Terry had a problem to solve at the 2024 RWA Open and the solution came out of being in a Jean Cocteau exhibition where the inspiration was a mirror - which quickly translated through to wrapping the artwork in silver - an obvious reference to my use of survival blankets. So the cross fertilisation works. |
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Portraits Projects 2008 - 2019
To the right, Portraits of the Somerset Carnivals 2013, was one of a set of portraiture projects which I produced for Terry. These included Portraits of the Arrow Tower Beijing, Portraits of the Working People of Somerset, Portraits of the Flat Iron Building New York, and so on.
This particular project of the Somerset Carnivals involved getting quite a few large floats to line up with our camera and organising the performers on each float to perform a tableau vivant which I directed or had the performers performing. The poster to the right was of an exhibition at the Somerset Rural Life Museum in 2013. Other portraits projects were exhibited in Venice, New York, Los Angeles etc. Beneath there's a version of this. |
The Artists Occupation 2005
2005 - The Occupation: The Ashley Court Hotel, Bristol Group Project, A large scale Collaborative project - organised by a smaller group of 5 including myself - this time with 19 artists occupying 19 spaces (and all other spaces in a hotel - this was originally visualised as an Artists invasion and occupation of a semi-public space, for the good of the commons) . Each room had a different installation created by each artist. Around 1,800 people came in over one weekend.
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*A note on Collaboration in Church and Cathedral spaces
I and Terry Flaxton RWA, have worked in many cathedrals around the world and understand how to act and install work. In the case of larger installs, a scissor-lift operated by a qualified driver will be used. Extreme care and consideration will be given to the ancient building and pillars. Health & Safety requirements will be adhered to and artist insurances will be in place. A meeting and site visit will take place before the artwork is installed and drawings of the plan presented by the artist.
In the smaller installations in churches of say one to three columns, installation can be achieved in 6 hours, whereas larger installations will take 2 days. An ‘open-sock’ with a liner starts at the floor and is pulled up to the top of each column and carefully tied to secure it - these are very light structure and no harm will be done to the architecture.
I and Terry Flaxton RWA, have worked in many cathedrals around the world and understand how to act and install work. In the case of larger installs, a scissor-lift operated by a qualified driver will be used. Extreme care and consideration will be given to the ancient building and pillars. Health & Safety requirements will be adhered to and artist insurances will be in place. A meeting and site visit will take place before the artwork is installed and drawings of the plan presented by the artist.
In the smaller installations in churches of say one to three columns, installation can be achieved in 6 hours, whereas larger installations will take 2 days. An ‘open-sock’ with a liner starts at the floor and is pulled up to the top of each column and carefully tied to secure it - these are very light structure and no harm will be done to the architecture.