Ibizan Goats, July 2012, Ibiza . Selected notes from the event: - “That’s a pretty big fire”, “Where did you say your house was?” “there…” (pointing) - I enjoyed holding the kid goats in my arms and talking to them gently, whilst painting them. - The gaps between the bars of the pen were bigger than the goats. - A bright pink goat running up the road with a farmer chasing it. - The farmer hosed my hands and feet off as I was multicoloured. - The dog came along getting involved so I painted him pink. - Some girls covered in body glitter jumped in and posed with the goats. - One of the organisers Giacomo made / played a techno mix of bleating goats, across the harbour. - I made a fluoro stone circle, which moved between the clifftop and the gallery. - A VJ working nearby - Chihiro - and I painted the leaves of the nearby plants. - Some of the goats ran into the gallery, presumably seeking ultraviolet light. - The goats ate the posters. - It was silly, but there was a seriousness in the comment on human nature. This tendency to glitter and paint ourselves, then dance in foam parties sealed off from the surrounding natural landscape. - The multifaceted relationship of humankind with each other, animals, and the land. Process of Ibizan Goats and Stone Circle Stone circle, fluoro body paint on stones collected from the site, Ibiza, 2012 Many thanks Chihiro, Giacomo and everyone at Bloop 2012 (.bloop-festival.com)
Dusk I, Abney Park Chapel, Stoke Newington, London, October to November 2012
Dust comprising of blue and red powder paint and glitter (remnants of a previous installation), was applied to found broken roof slate and used to create an eight foot high heart, in the dilapidated Abney Park Chapel. Pieces of coated slate were given to the 'Dusk' visitors. Video footage of dancing in the dust, moved across the sculpture and around the chapel. When on the surface of the heart it created the illusion of glass, with fragments reflecting the light and sparkling "like the night sky". This was inside the chapel, which was usually closed to the public and located at the centre of a non denominational graveyard; used for burials, as a nature reserve, and informally for homeless people sleeping rough.
Parts of 'Dusk' that could not be owned, such as the dark guided walk through mud from the cemetery gates to the chapel, by a man in a black cloak, bat poo landing on your head, and talking intimately with a stranger - in a quite silent part of London, contributed to the essence of the piece. Limited edition prints of the work were displayed in the cemetery information room for three years.
"The sharing of an ending, was largely about acceptance of that which has gone before or lasted fleetingly; that is existence. The intimate nature of the short openings, that were a little earlier every day as the nights drew in, resulted in the sharing of personal stories between strangers whom volunteered reflections on their own experiences, in the company of bats flying overhead.
It also celebrated the existence of the crumbling chapel - one of the first in Europe to be open to all religions - before it was fenced off due to disrepair. Broken roof slate from the chapel floor, along with left over materials swept up after a previous exhibition, formed the surface of the heart, which hosted a projection of a couple dancing who had now parted company. Pieces of the live painting were given to visitors as mementos." Lee Simmons Dusk background materials from Lee Simmons on Vimeo.
Haiku for Lee’s Dust
A piece of blue moon, is our sharing broken hearts, we dance into one. Noriko Onohara
Many thanks to Abney Park staff and volunteers, Simone Koch, Chihiro Onedera, Gavin White, and everyone who took part. (abneypark.org)
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