Movement through space at Siobhan Davies Dance.

This collection of Images were taken on one of the very first visits to Siobhan Davies Dance back in December 2013 at the beginning of my research for the Human Nature Season in 2014.

I was partly interested in looking at the movement through space and also wanted to push the capability of the camera to slow the final images down.

Although the outcome for Human Nature was completely different I still consider these to be important in the initial stages of the thought process.

I'm in not doubt that they will feed into another project at some point in the future. 

All images taken by Ben Winkley Dec 2013

All images taken by Kim Norton Dec 2013 

Physical traces of making

This exploratory work has been sitting in my sketch book for a while now. I'm revisiting it as I think I've finally formulated my thinking enough to begin to develop it further.

I'm looking at the process of making and the importance of that direct contact or handling of a material through making. In this case I'm using three different clays. 

With a simple set of instructions such as: pushing, squeezing, folding, opening I've been interpreting and responding to these words through the movement and manipulation of the clay itself.

 The initial idea came from looking at Richard Serra's verb list. There is a rhythm to this list in much the same way there is a rhythm to many making processes. 

http://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2011/10/20/to-collect

Each piece of clay begins in the shape of a ball. The idea is to work quickly without over thinking each instruction meaning you are left with an object that hasn't been overworked. All tools have been removed from this process. Every mark, trace and indentation has been made through my hands or contact with the work bench.

I will be posting more images as this begins to unfold. 

All images taken by Ben Winkley 2015

Bergen and the British Ceramics Biennial:Topographies of the Obsolete. Vociferous Void

Several weeks ago I spent two days in Stoke at the Ceramics Conference hosted by the British Ceramics Biennial 2013. 

During my first visit I had quickly popped into Bergen's Topographies of the Obsolete a collaboration between the British Ceramics Biennial and Bergen Academy of Art and Design and quickly realised this was something I needed to spend more time with.

 This artistic research project initiated by Neil Brownsword and Anne Helen Mydland partnered with several universities across Germany, Denmark and the UK. This had been a year's work exploring the site specific and associated histories of post industry.

Installations had been positioned across the Spode site in rooms, offices, work areas which opened to the public for the first time. 

What I really enjoyed about this entire showcase was each project was entirely rooted within Spode, the site was a solid hinge for every individual response and clay was something that became secondary. 

In some of the responses clay was used because it was integral for the final outcome in many cases clay wasn't used at all the appropriation of materials and objects were used such as the moulds and the re-contexulisation of existing objects taken from the site such as Neil Brownsword's Vis Unita Fortior (United strength is stronger)

Toril Redalen work based around dust Andrew Browns sound works the diversity was really inspiring to see and experience how considered and sensitivity handled each response was to the site. 
There was a distinct feeling every artist involved in this work really had an ingrained knowledge and understanding that can only come from really immersing yourself in to the space and environment you are working with. 

Here are a few examples. 
This body of work is also accompanied by two excellent texts 
Topographies of the Obsolete : Critical Texts 
Topographies of the Obsolete : Vociferous Void

Both well worth a read for anyone interested or working within contemporary art practises.

During the conference we had the opportunity to accompany Andrew Brown around the site to participate in his sound piece (A Walk Through S) 
Approx 25 visitors were hooked up to individual iPods and followed Andrew in and around Spode whilst being taken on a physical, visual and experiential journey through sound and conversation. The interesting element here was the sound work had synchronised with many of the temporary installations and site responses making the experience multi layered for the viewer. 

Numi Thorvarsson

This installation was positioned upstairs in the old offices spaces. Camera Obscura were made utilising the old Spode moulds positioning them to capture the iconic Spode chimney a landmark instantly recognisable within the landscape. 

Erna Skuladottir The Desert 

The Desert instantly resonated with me. Large surface areas covered in clay carpeting the space in which it sits. I'm always drawn to materiality when dealt with on scale.

It was a response to abandonment likening this space to an empty barren desert. Marks cracks crevices are everywhere within Spode each has it's own story and insight in to the processes and production that had taken place here within the past 250 years. 

Oyvind Suul

Tone Saastad

Lena Kaapke

This piece of work started with a walking exploration around Stoke itself. 

Collecting place,space and identity. 

What really captured me about this was the presentation at first each object appears to be have been quite randomly positioned. 

However, it becomes clear that it has been curated according to the location each piece had been collected creating a clear narrative from the original walking route.