e-dition sept 20

in the loop - sept 20

realtime’s advance word

ina Stuhldreher, HOW I GOT GLOBALISM - Elements of a magic serendipity circle, (work in progress), 2011 courtesy the artist

live art galleries

Whether by chance or design, two Sydney galleries are opening their doors for a month of performances and live art. At Tin Sheds Gallery, Rules of Play includes a series of readings, performances and works in progress. This is the Australian iteration of the exhibition which first took place at the Bell Street Project Space in Vienna in 2010 and features familiar faces from the growing live art/visual art cross-over scene such a Sarah Rodigari, Brian Fuata, Agatha Gothe-Snape, Teik-Kim Pok, Michaela Gleave and Kathryn Gray alongside international guests Bernadette Anzengruber, Michael Poetschko and Nina Stuhldreher.

Family photograph of Teik-Kim Pok performing magic in Singapore circa 1995 courtesy the artist

Teik-Kim Pok is available for psychic readings, Brian Fuata asks his audience to learn and pass on a performance while Michael Poetschko continues his video-work-in-progress made across a number of cities exploring the idea of the “zone” in Tarkovsky’s Stalker. The exhibition component is open during the day with performances Wednesday-Friday nights and Saturday afternoons. Rules of Play, curator Kathryn Gray, supported by the Tin Sheds Curate/Innovate grant, Tin Sheds Gallery, Sept 9 - Oct 1; http://tinsheds.wordpress.com/; http://playingrules.tumblr.com/

Alexandra Clapham and Penelope Benton: THE GREAT WINTER photo courtesy the artists

September has also seen Peloton (P25) hosting Performance Month showcasing "both emerging and established artists within the field and spirit of Performance" (website). The final performances will feature Alexandra Clapham and Penelope Benton presenting the Great Winter, an endurance work built around movement and stillness inspired by the Norse myth of a three-year Winter—prelude to a devastating battle destroying heaven and earth. Sach Catts continues his ongoing investigation into stress and points of failure using concepts from structural engineering. Kevin Platt hopes to sing with a dog named Alfie, and the work by a collective of 80s performance artists R.O. & S.Q. remains deliberately mysterious. Art band Ex-Trendy (Robbie Ho and Matte Rochford) will finish off the month rocking the final night party. Performance Month, curator Francesca Heinz, Peloton, p25, Sept 1-25 peloton.net.au/

roaming sydney streets

Victoria Hunt, No Cold Feet, De Quicney Co photo Paris Spellson

For 10 years the annual Art and About festival has been chipping away at the reputation of Sydney’s CBD as a cultural wasteland and the program for the 2011 festival looks like they’ve really made some headway. A particular highlight will be Janet Echelman’s Tsunami 1.26 (actually based on the Chilean earthquake in 2010, not the recent Japanese catastrophe)—a gigantic piece of crocheted netting based on a 3D model of the tsunami. Made from high-tensile rope and suspended above the city it will “create an oasis of sculpture delicate enough to be choreographed by the wind” (website). Tsunami 1.26 is part of Powerhouse Museum’s Love Lace exhibition.

UK artist Michael Landy will present the 24th Kaldor Public Art Project, Acts of Kindness, in which he maps the collection of stories of small moments of kindness from Sydneysiders. Contested Landscape: Art Meets Science at Customs House Square curated by Leo Robba and produced by Anthony Papp, brings together a collection of artists and scientists “to tackle the complex contests for scarce land and resources facing our local communities” (website). At Sandringham Gardens in Hyde Park, Liane Rossler and Heidi Dokulil will present Happy Talk, building a pavilion using traditional methods and instigating talk and sharing around design in Pacific Island culture. And of course there’s the next installment of Laneway Art running until January 2012. (See review of the 2010 installment in RT101)

As well as the main program there’s a range of associated events such as the Mad Square After Hours activities at the AGNSW and De Quincey Co’s No Cold Feet, a dance/BodyWeather performance taking place in and around the architecture of St Mary’s Cathedral Square (See realtimedance for a profile on Tess de Quincey). Art & About, various locations, Sydney, produced by City of Sydney Events Unit, Sept 23- Oct 23

thou dost protest too much

Insomnia Cat Came to Stay, Crack Theatre Festival, TINA courtesy the artists

Almost here is This is Not Art, the multi-headed beast that includes the sub-festivals Electrofringe, The National Young Writers’ Festival, Critical Animals Creative Research Symposium and the Crack Theatre Festival. Back in July, the situation seemed dire with Newcastle City Council deciding not to renew the festival’s triennial funding leaving them with an $18,000 shortfall. However in a show of support for the event, over $9,000 was raised via crowd-funding, with the Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) coming on board with matching funding. In addition, local businesses chipped in and now the Council has seen the error of its ways and looks like increasing support in the future. So TINA lives on!

Now in its 14th year, Electrofringe is, as always, jam-packed with geekery, but with an emphasis on accessibility. You can learn about Arduino interfaces, hackerspaces, digital prototyping, solar-powered sound systems and the artistic integrity of robots. Then you can experience a range of innovative performances including electronic music duo Icarus’ album of 1000 variations; witness audiovisual meldings in the Electrobinge showcase and get into ‘digital freestyling’ with instruments generated in the Experimental Digital Instruments and their Performance course. Not to mention the Treasure Hunt where you pick up digital clues on USB sticks around Newcastle. There’s also the annual Electroprojections video screenings and Soda_Jerk’s Pixel Pirate II. (See RealTime’s Studio for the duo’s The Carousel. Festival co-director Cara Anne-Simpson also features in our studio)

Cracked Theatre Festival is a recent addition to the TINA family, starting out as a performance program of the 2007 National Young Writers’ festival. This year it’s offering workshops with Restless Dance Theatre, Leisa Shelton, Ever After Theatre and MKA. Also on offer are performances including Laura Scrivano’s Rapid Response, creating short site- specific performances around the city; Insomnia Cat Came To Stay, a kinky cabaret by Fleur Susannah Kilpatrick; and the Remix project by dancer Emiline Forster conjuring new choreographies from audience remixes of video clips.

Sound Summit, which has been part of the festival since 1998, has now separated from TINA, but will take place at the same time, same place, producing a range of workshops, label showcases and gigs headlined by MONO (Japan), Moon Duo (USA) and Wet Hair (USA) plus industry panels and DIY workshops.

This Is Not Art, various venues Newcastle, NSW, Sept 29-Oct 3; http://thisisnotart.org/, http://electrofringe.net/2011/, http://cracktheatrefestival.com/; Sound Summit, various venues Newcastle, NSW, Oct 1-Oct 3; www.soundsummit.com.au

southern fringes

Atlas, Melbourne Fringe courtesy Melbourne Fringe

It seems Spring breeds fringe festivals, with Brisbane’s Under the Radar almost over, Sydney Fringe continuing and the Melbourne Fringe kicking off on September 21. As usual there is a plethora of performance, dance, music and visual art experiences from independent artists, too numerous to offer highlights here. As well as presenting a range of independent productions, the Melbourne Fringe produces some programs itself and this year their ‘keynote’ project is Atlas. For the last three months local artists Benjamin Ducroz, Kieran Swann and Kit Webster have been consulting architects and designers in order to adapt their practices towards creating large scale installations and instigations around Melbourne, looking to actively engage the spectator as performer. Ducroz uses pattern based stop motion animation exploring the movements of nature; Swann ranges across performance, video and installation; while Webster works with audiovisual installations, digital sculptures and projections. The projects are expected to be “of a scale and standard that is beyond the usual financial or technical capabilities of an independent artist. And the audience can watch it as it unfolds” (media release). Melbourne Fringe, various venues; Sept 21- Oct 9; www.melbournefringe.com.au/

music takes flight

While Perth audiences are being treated to the banquet of events that is Totally Huge New Music Festival (see RealTime’s daily onsite coverage http://www.realtimearts.net/feature_contents/Totally_Huge_New_Music_Festival_2011) Sydney audience will have the pleasure of a one-off performance by acclaimed New York sextet Eighth Blackbird (named after a Wallace Stevens’ poem “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird”). Playing from memory, the group is widely recognized for their “theatrical flair—and for making new music accessible to wide audiences” (website) with the New Yorker describing them as “friendly, unpretentious, idealistic and highly skilled.” For their Sydney concert they’ll be performing works by Philip Glass, Fabian Svensson, Mayke Nas, Timo Andres, Dan Visconti and Stephen Hartke. Eighth Blackbird, Studio, Sydney Opera House, Sept 22; www.sydneyoperahouse.com

local sites and sounds

The Leichhardt Council is calling for proposals for their pilot program that will see the historic town hall opened up for a variety of cultural activities across Autumn 2012. Individuals and groups are invited to submit proposals for a one-off, or series of events between March and May that will "will entertain, provoke, stimulate, and/or educate local and visiting audiences" (submission form). There's an emphasis on engaging with the local community but events can include performances, concerts, festivals, workshops and even balls and markets. While the Leichhardt Town Hall is the focus for this program there is the potential to extend to other town halls and spaces within the Leichhardt local government area which includes Balmain, Rozelle and Annandale. Applications are also open to artists and groups not based in the area. Applications close October 11, 2011, www.leichhardt.nsw.gov.au/Grants.html

RealTime issue #104 Aug-Sept 2011 pg. web

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