03/09/2009 by James.

Here’s some information for your diaries on the Dia de los Muertos exhibition and auction; raising funds for the charity from the sale of artwork made by a group of invited artists, and based on the Mexican ‘Day of the Dead’ festival.

As you can see from the list of artists involved, mine will probably be a little more affordable than the rest.

Exhibition dates - 27th October to the 1st November 11.00 a.m to 5.00 p.m at The Proud Gallery, Camden

Artwork available to buy via the Mencap website, from the exhibition or by auction at Bonhams, Knightsbridge on 11th November

Other artists exhibiting include -  Craigie Aitchison, Tracey Emin, Gillian Ayres OBE, Martin Parr, David Birkin, Matthew Williamson, John Keane, Hilary Simon, Roberto Gonzalez Fernandez (RGF + DDT), Carlos Diez Bustos, David Trullo and Stephen Wright

Should be a wide range of interpretations on the theme, so worth a look even if you can’t afford to buy…

More info nearer the time on the Mencap website

Posted in Art & Disabiltiy, other art, events, me & my work | Print | No Comments »

16/02/2009 by James.

I have been doing a lot of thinking recently about the value of making more political artwork, relating especially to disability arts. This has partly been triggered by discussions with Alicia Grace, a dramaturg and Kaleido board member based in Totnes, with whom I have been sharing some really interesting discussions on Art, Disability and Ecology.

I won’t try to sum up Alicia’s work in case I misrepresent her, but she will shortly be writing an article on the Alias Arts website, so keep an eye out for that - www.aliasarts.org

I value what Disability Arts has to offer those who chose to take part and those they aim to represent; the way that limiting models of reality can altered or deconstructed. From time to time I choose to make work which is explicitly informed by my experience of disability, but on the whole, I tend to focus on work which explores and shares my whole experience as an individual, learning through the interaction between my physical environment and sensing body, and then reflecting on my place within it.

I have been reading some of the blog of Philip Patson today (” I am a comedian, consultant and social entrepreneur. Sometimes I describe myself as a creative philanthropist…”) and I thought it might be interesting to add some of his thoughts here too….

‘…if we want to create a world where that uniqueness can be valued as much as common experience, we need to start changing language. When we call ourselves disabled artists, what are we thinking about ourselves? What are we putting out to the world and what is coming back to us from the world? What if we used different language, like the ‘art of unique experience’ or ‘art of experiential diversity’? I don’t know exactly what the language should be, but let’s start thinking about it so that we can move forward.’

www.philippatson.com

Posted in Art & Disabiltiy, me & my work | Print | No Comments »

01/02/2009 by James.

I’ve been reflecting on my past work and future direction recently, and hope that it is helpful to share my thoughts….

The more that I discuss the point of art and the potential for it to act as a means of social change and ecological renewal, the more I realise the value, honesty and integrity of work I made as a student 10 to 15 years ago.

At the time I was trying to create work that was about the primacy of direct sensory experience and the importance of dialogue between an individual and their physical environment, through exploring, recording and making.

The bundles of found materials, the text taken from journals and diaries of my walks, and the body spaces that I wove and constructed from local materials, seem now to embody this kind of approach best of all. I wanted to engage with an audience, to draw them in and leave room for their own response; a physical and a metaphorical or poetic space for them to bring their own creativity, ideas and experience, to empathise with my experiences but leave room for consideration of their own.

At the time I was impressionable, and was told it had all been done before; that it was craft and not art, that it was too beautiful and needed to be more shocking. Apparently I was being naive.

Now, after 10 or 12 years of working in the arts and watching the emphasis grow from shock and spectacle towards engagement and interaction, I feel like the (academic) art world is slowly catching up with the needs of society and of our natural environment. The power of working methods that explore dialogue between people, and between those people and the environment within which they are embedded, is slowly becoming recognised as a permanent need.

I know there have been movements that have sought to champion the rights of ‘the other’ and these have been vital, and still play an important role. Land Art, Feminist, Queer, and Disability Arts were all created for a reason, but what comes next and alongside them?

It feels to me that there is a growing recognition of the need for creative investigation and reflection on our individual experience, rather than models of art and education that subsribe to or react against established ways of being; and subsequently for dialogue between individuals and disciplines, as a means of creating a social ecology of connection and inclusion.

Language and working methods across disciplines are starting to be shared, echoed and re-inforced in a more integrated and interconnected way. Art and educational practices that explore the relationship between body, site, dialogue and process are championing the right for us to be individuals AND an integral part of a positively functioning whole at the same time, in a way that earlier artistic and political movements made way for but couldn’t quite allow.

SO…. I am revisiting that earlier work that explores the world around me and uses making to reflect on my experiences, which sets up a dialogue with the places and materials of my surrounding ecosystems. And I am continuing to initiate projects and conversations that support others to do the same.

And maybe, bit by bit we can create a world between us that values difference AND recognises what we share; that sees the world through a model of reality based on the interconnection of different subjective experiences, rather than one which reinforces the dualities of ‘us and them’, ‘man and nature’, ‘disabled and normal‘

Posted in Art & Disabiltiy, environmental issues, me & my work | Print | 1 Comment »