Just a sneak peek at our upcoming artist for April Mathias Kryger, also from Copenhagen. His work is performance based and we are thinking he is somewhat rock n roll! He is flying out for his show with us which opens Friday 5th April. Here is an article from the latest Danish Elle Magazine in which he talks about his work and his upcoming show at RAYGUN. Splendid!
This morning we put Thorgej on a bus for his flight home back to Copenhagen via a few days checking out Brisbane.
Here are some photos of his time he had with us. Of course they are just a few, but we have really enjoyed having him amongst our creative community in Toowoomba. We learnt so much about his work and culture and in turn have gained new perspectives on our own practices. We shared meals every night and took it in turns to be the host. He was a star for a night being the DJ with David Usher at Phat Burgers Vinyl Sunday session, he checked out kangaroos and saw a bit of our landscape (even though it was raining most of the time) and gave a talk to art students and lecturers about his practice out at the University. Great fun thanks Thorgej and we look forward to seeing you in your own home town soon.
Thorgej is staying with us for a week in Toowoomba and we are enjoying having conversations about art, our art, his art, our culture, his culture etc. It’s interesting the ideas embedded within his practice such as historical movements associated with Modernist artists/movements, and how he is interested in placing different ideas in a particular setting, and how he uses his record collection as a point of departure, like a kind of engine from which new ideas emerge. Here are some images from his most recent exhibition in Copenhagen. Check out more of his work at http://kunstdk.dk/kunstner/thorgej_steen_hansen/vaerker/non-shop-records
Last night was Thorgej’s opening night in the RAYGUN space and he was kept busy with lots of new people to meet and conversations. Kyle Jenkins played some fantastic songs while Thorgej did a video and sound recording. Here are some images of the works after install and some music clips and photos from the night are on their way.
Edi Rama artist turned politician uses paint to create a better world. Edi talks at TEDx
image is from sustainableideas.it
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Harrell Fletcher interviewed by Allan McCollum WE GENERALLY EXPECT OUR ARTISTS TO BE MORE INTERESTING people than those from other walks of life, and we reward them for their special abilities to help the rest of us find complexity of meaning, beauty and even grandeur in the world around us. So when an artist attempts to sidestep that mythology and chooses a project that shifts the attention away from himself to the capabilities of other people, it’s not an easy task; such efforts can be hard to read without prejudice. Harrell Fletcher, an artist originally from California and now living in Portland, Oregon, has taken it upon himself to turn the spotlight onto others. With a dedicated, empathic intelligence, he treats us to the joy and poignancy of appreciating our fellow humans by walking a difficult line between artistic skill, organizational savvy and anonymity. Interview took place on July 29, 2005 in New York City (images and captions are from the artist’s website) |
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Allan McCollum: One of the things I enjoy about your work is the way that the meaning of it doesn’t reside in any one piece. In fact, if you take a look at any one piece you might pass over it; they’re often so simple and easy to describe. But when you start looking at project after project after project, it seems to go into the hundreds, and then you get into your Learning to Love You More website and there’s a couple of thousand more projects to look at, then pretty soon you start realizing that your work is best understood when you take a look at everything, a lot of small projects, and at the way everything is balanced—and then a certain set of values comes through. You’re not trying to produce singular masterpieces, like what we generally expect from an artist. And this is one of the ways you turn things on their head all the time, and it constantly takes me by surprise. Like the way almost all your work is totally about people other than yourself. A lot of the things that we expect an artist to do, you do backwards. Harrell Fletcher: That’s true. I saw the structure of how an artist is supposed to operate, but most of those structures didn’t feel comfortable to me. At a certain point, while I was still in graduate school, I just started realizing that I didn’t have to go the normal course. I could just do what seemed like the right thing for me to do. AM: How did you perceive the ‘normal course’ while you were in school? HF: Well, it’s so concentrated in graduate school. You see all of these people going into their studios. They’re all making objects, paintings, whatever, and they’re spending hours and hours doing that. It’s really supposed to be about isolating yourself from the world. Maybe there is a wall of inspirational pictures from magazines or something like that, but otherwise that’s the extent you’re supposed to be interacting with the world. click here to read the rest of the interview http://allanmccollum.net/allanmcnyc/harrellfletcher/mccollum_interview.html |
Harrell Fletcher talks about the interests surrounding his practice and his project at the Tate. Take a few minutes, it’s a great project.
So a part of the project we are doing at the moment with Michael for Harrell Fletcher’s show is to get to know him.
This morning we took him up to the RAYGUN space and did a short interview with him. This is what we discovered…….
What is your name? Michael Pleming
Where were you born? Tamora, NSW.
Where have you spent most of your life?
My first 13 years on a property called Ariah Park, via Tamora.
3 years Wagga Wagga, NSW.
7 years Melbourne, Victoria.
3 years Wagga Wagga, NSW.
3 years Brisbane, QLD
10 years Sydney, NSW.
12 years Toowoomba, QLD
Did you study when you left school? Yes, I studied fashion design at RMIT in Melbourne, Victoria.
Do you have any pets? Not currently but my favourite pets have been Thoroughbred horses and Greyhound dogs. Fast machines, I like fast machines.
List 3 things in your life that you’ve loved doing? Horse riding, swimming, and fashion design.
List 3 things in your life that you couldn’t do without? My health, fresh air and good food.
When you move to a new home what are 4 things you look for? A quiet street, lots of windows to let the Northern lights in and a great location, whether it be on a mountain top or by the beach.
Favourite food? I have 2 favourite cuisines – Japanese and French.
Favourite travel destination? Australia.
What are your favourite wine regions? Mornington Peninsula, Yarra Valley, Northern Tasmania and Great Southern- Western Australia.
Favourite colour? I have several favourite colours, orange, grass green, white is a favourite colour and red is a favourite colour but I also really love yellow ocres and browns.
Do you read? Extensively. What kind of things? I read the Bible every day for around 2 to 2 and a half hours. I read a lot about the food and wine industry. I don’t read novels or fiction.
If you needed to communicate with a friend how would you do it? Face to face or by telephone. Mobile phone if I have to.
Drive or cycle? Definitely cycle unless its too far. With the advent of electric bikes they can take you farther. Everybody needs to ride a bike.
Have you got a favourite quote? Not off the top of my head. Or something you’ve learnt this week? I remembered my Grandma this week.
That is a really beautiful thing.
Thanks for having me.
Today we met with our new friend Michael Pleming. We sat for 3 hours drinking tea and having breakfast while he shared photos and stories of his life. The most amazing project thank you Harrell and stay tuned as the story/project unfolds……
