look at it this way: Chris Burden 'Trans Fixed' 1974

NIGHTWORKER

September through to December 2010 I was ‘animateur in residence’ at Fabrica in Brighton. This was during the House of Vernacular, an exhibition curated by photographer Martin Parr. It consisted of seven different collections of photographs presented in a series of theatrically styled rooms built into the gallery. Animateur (or artist in residence) is a loose term which Fabrica are still trying to define. Each resident offers up a new perspective. I took it as an opportunity to advance certain topics that are becoming apparent in my own work. How to integrate photography into action + what happened to the idea that work can be exhibited beyond white walled galleries and their more recent pop-up derivatives. I wasn’t expected to produce new work, but to use the vernacular exhibition as a spring board for discussion. In the end I returned to a project I was already working on, stories and portraits of people who work at night. What does the 24hr economy feel like for those who are involved in making it happen? This became two blogs, a series of useful debates and a portable Nightworker exhibition carried around the city centre at night. This blog looks at differing ways of presenting work. The second blog, www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking/projects/single/679476 follows the progress of the Nightworker portraits.

ARTIST ANIMATEUR?

I am often described as an visual artist but why? My practice has always been outside the conventional gallery space and I could be more easily categorised as an instigator of massive happenings, mobile automissions, gatherings, and disturbances. The only time I have used galleries is when my work is commenting specifically on 'art' itself. So, what are exhibitions for? I am using this role of 'animateur' for the House of Vernacular as an opportunity to share my dilemma with a wider audience.

look at it this way

Dial Emma

Thursday, 12 August 2010

Chris Burden 'Trans Fixed' 1974

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