veniceisstillthereasever

So Venice was where and how I left it. I'm always surprised and stunned by it. A truly amazing vibrant place, when you are there you continue to ask how can it exist? When you are gone you ask will it be there next time? And then there was the art. After 4 days at the Biennale looking, listening, and smelling art one is left with a lot to think about. One thing is that it becomes increasingly clear why authoritarian regimes and police states try to silence art and culture - (this includes the present UK government). The arts repeatedly speak truth to power, pointing out the governments distain for any opposition to their self-interested greed. Colonialism, representation, hierarchical thinking, craft skills. Every two years my art education is expanded, along with inspiration for the teaching I do. There is so much to mention but some stand out moments include Julien Creuzet’s extraordinary films and textile pieces in the French Pavilion. The oddly compelling opera by Wael Shawky in the Egyptian pavilion. The image of a young dead man created by using their own blood by Theresa Margolles. The haunting organ pipes held in a forest of scaffolding in the Italian Pavilion, the delicate blown glass of Michael Joo in the Korean Pavilion that celebrated their involvement in the Biennale. The beautifully slight interplay of fruit and water power generated sound, in the Japanese Pavilion. The glorious, excess of the German Pavilion. The stoic, thoughtful professionalism displayed in John Akomfrah’s work in the British Pavilion. Giant puppets displayed unconventionally with a drumming soundtrack in the Belgium Pavilion. A truly sensual dance for two people and a conjoined shirt by Kang Seung Lee. Other dance pieces one by Isaac Chong Wai about falling and a work exploring queer histories by Ahmed Umar were mesmerizing. The beautiful dialogue between Tintoretto and dyed cloth in Uruguay Pavilion by Eduardo Cardozo. The use of repetitive mark making, weaving and knit to celebrate cultures otherwise underrepresented was everywhere. Away from the Biennale the extraordinary show by Pierre Huyghe at the Punta della Dogana is full of wait-what-how moments. He has to be one of the most interesting artists making highly relevant work at the moment. The video Untitled (Human Mask) of the monkey/human abandoned in a deserted town has to be seen to be believed and let's not forget a crab 'wearing' Brancusi's head in a fish tank with floating rocks. Then there was the joining in of the mass celebration with football fans on Sunday night after their win - flares, fireworks, drums, giant flags, chanting, megaphones, utter madness. Getting boats in the dark out to Saint Helena just because you can, and of course the boat taxi from the airport channelling James Bond, quite possibly the coolest journey I ever make. The food..........can't wait to return. 

magicalspaces

So Venice Biennale was, as ever most excellent. I can never get over the fact that Venice is there just as I left it.... Where to start - it all begins when you get on the water taxi from the airport, arriving in this exciting way to the magical space of Venice is my favourite journey ever. Entering the canals from the choppy waters through the fortified external wall of the city and emerging in the Grand Canal is truly wondrous. Between then and getting back to the airport the time was spent with 3 days of art with time for eating and drinking after hard core experiencing. So much to say but highlights of the National pavilions for me were Marco Fusinato in the Australian just gloriously brutal. Yunchul Kim in the Korean space was awe inspiring art informed by science. The main exhibition had some beautiful paintings by Chiara Enzo and The Sex Robot video of Sidel Meineche Hansen had images of which will stay in my head for a long time. The monumental industrial narrative that was created for the Italian space was reminiscent of childhood wanderings through abandoned factories. Day two at the Arsenale is always a marathon, like joining 4 or 5 Tate's together. The historical work’s highlights were the medical models of Aletta Jacobs and Anna Coleman Ladd. The curated section had some gems that I am still thinking about – to name a few the graphic images of Beklis Ayon,  Egle Budvytyte’s video exploring our relationship to the environment, the startling paintings of Felipe Baeza and Pinaree Sanpitak, the smell of Delicy Morelos’s soil installation, Sheroanawe Hakihiiwe’s striking prints, the disturbing video by Zheng Bo with men and the forest, the giant symbols by Solange Pessoa, Joanna Piotrowska’s seemingly domestic yes other photographs, Carolyn Lazard’s reimagining of objects, Luyang’s animated future, dogs on the loose in the video of Janis Rafa, the haunting video by Diego Marcon, and there is always Barbara Kruger. There was so much textile activity on display, a way for the artists to talk of globalization, capitalism, workers’ rights, and sexual politics among other issues. The Philippines had some excellent ikat weaving alongside sound pieces, resembling the noise of the looms the work was made on. Day three is about collateral events, which gives you the opportunity to walk through the city between extraordinary venues which is always wonderful. I can’t wait till the next time.

justwhereileftit

Venice felt like it was just where I left it - returning again for the Biennale and 3 intense days of 'art looking' the anticipation is huge but this year was one of the best in terms of the work. The heat meant lots of stops for reflection and refreshment which makes it a richer experience. The Pavilions were strong with some real standouts - Latvia, Australia, Nordic, Poland and Japan will stay with me for a long time. The curated show in the Arsenale was stunning - I felt held by the thinking behind the works, wonderful links were made between the incredible artworks all presented within a wooden structure that allowed for space and showed the work off really well. a quick review of it all starting with the national pavilions ........Swiss - film backwards is always good - Venezuela - Facebook masks - Russia - mechanical son - Japan - ethereal mystic egg - Korea- dancers out of place - German - constructed rocks - Canada - Inuit issues - England- artschool meaningful tropes - France - trippy boho - check/Slovak - old school geometry- Uruguay - scattered moments - Australia - power behind and in front - Nordic- organic digital - Denmark - sci-fi death - America - tasteful americana - Hungary photographing imagined cameras - Israel - medicalisation of abuse - Brazil - dance dance dance - Austria - old fashioned porno - Serbia - 1982 again - Egypt - I once saw a picture of Egyptian stuff so I made some stuff - Poland - total mind fuck - Romania - unfinished who cares - Greece - what - Holland - measuring sticks - Finland - growing simplicity - Belgium - mechanical folk weirdness - Spain - unseen spaces between - Lithuania- sublime beach opera - Albania - sci-fi chrome dystopia - Antigua - carnival explained - Azerbaijan - truth lies - Bosnia - possible possibilities - China - water and disturbing morf - Croatia - beautiful background images of desolation - Georgia - taps water and meaningless bathrooms - India - Gandhi is important - Ireland - some materials - Italy - annoying maze - Kosovo - incredible stories told incredibly - Latvia - colourful materials - Luxembourg - a wall of wet books - Madagascar - tissue layers like mountains - Peru - uncomfortable images of lady bugs - Philippines - standing on glass for Instagram - Wales - disparate objects still disparate - Saudi Arabia - lots and lots and lots of seed pods - Singapore - stunning folded graphic scores for recorders - Slovenia - military tracking - Ukraine - wonderful shadow idea - UAE - a narrative can have 2 sides - Hong Kong - delicate balanced craft - Zimbabwe - yet more disagreements - Individual artists who had work in the Arsenale and stood out included the war film of Christian Marclay - Tavares Stachan’s neon skeleton - I saw Ed Atkins at Cabinet last year but it was good to revisit - Liu Wei’s shaking windows of protest - the slow comic burn of Alex Da Corte and his disturbing videos - the data overload of Ryoki Ikeda - the sad disturbing walls of Rula Halawani - gorgeous calm dancing weaves of Suki Seokyeong Kang - Christine and Margaret Wertheim’s crochet coral - Jon Rafmans disturbing dystopia vision of something or someplace - the quiet rebellious work of Frida Orupabo - liminal power abused by the military exposed by Lawrence Abu Hamadan - the extraordinary commentary of a black experience through BLKNEWS by Kahlil Joseph, the staged photography of Stan Douglas - the whipping chair and blood machine of Sun Yuan & Peng Yu - playful Tarek Atoui playing ceramics - Collateral Events included The Death of James Lee Byars - lots of gold leaf - Future Generation Art Prize, which had the mind and body twisted work by Jakob Steensen, quite possibly the most disorientating VR I’ve experienced -  FutuaRoma had a stunningly thoughtful animation and free wild seeds - the oppressive 3x3x6 looked at ownership of data - Living Rocks was an incredibly precise 20m projection, From image to shape presented the intriguing Arte povera work of Pino Pascali and ending the 'art looking' at the glorious Punta Della Dogana for the superbly curated Luogo e Segni show of very special work in a very special space - I just love the concrete of Tao Dao so - until 2021 - already looking forward to it.

lookingforwardandorganising

today is a busy day of organising - work for a show in Wyoming, fabric for new shirts to be made and materials for tomorrows making day at OCA - a kind of observed together yet apart day of art studio practice - wonderfully engaging. I have been buying 'interesting' fabric and getting shirts made - some examples. Beginning to get excited about a few events coming up - in the short term tonight its Russell Maliphant's Silent Lines at the Dance House in Ipswich. Later - its Latitude which has become a little main stream so it's only its location - literally 8 miles from my house which makes it almost rude not to go...wandering into Underworld outside late at night has got to be okay. On the longest day there is First light in Lowestoft a FREE 24hr non-stop, beach festival https://firstlightlowestoft.com Its the year of Venice Biennale which is always awesome - the title May you live in interesting times feels like a threat! the excitement is bursting, especially as Jimmie Durham has been awarded the Golden Lion - his smashing objects video is hilariously disturbingly sad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SOj9vumZOY I can almost taste the Aperol Spritz and feel the warmth of the sun after a long day of 'art looking'. In terms of screens the Beautiful yet chaotic Marwen is worth a watch https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3289724/ The new series remake of Hannah seems unnecessary. Glass was a little disjointed to keep up and in the end I ceased to care but Samuel Jackson wears a great suit!

Got to go to the new Escape Room in Saxmundham, Suffolk - surrounded by wondrous airstream land yachts that you can stay in https://www.suffolkescaperoom.co.uk/  based on a WW2 theme - my first time in one - it was interesting/intriguing with clues everywhere - we got out but maybe a little bit of luck helped.

itsanationalisticdicktatorship.....maybe

a system for mass producing life-size Christ's made of mould, raining inside a building, a football sized reflection of a factory, a room of wool, an alternative history of Alien human interaction, truly huge projections in post industrial settings, questioning of questionable person aesthetics and national values, giant statements in Nationalistic settings  - it must be Venice Biennale... as Christine Macel states in the catalogue 'art bears witness to the most precious part of what makes us human at a point when humanism is precisely jeopardised, art is the ultimate ground for reflection'. four days in Venice going to the Biennale exhibition gives one a real sense that artist are doing their job, observing, pointing out, calling to order and celebrating what it is to be human. The highlight was the 2 hour performance in the German Pavilion by Anne Imhof. It was stunning, challenging and thoughtful, the room divided in such a way allowed performers to move under the audience, performing tasks while we observed and always out of control. Then there was the Spanish Pavilion which celebrated nomadic culture through a group that supports their rights - the idea of a DICKtatorship and the COCKocracy of our lives was wonderful. Most Nations pavilions looked at where we are now and if felt that those that didn't missed out on the opportunity to actually say something.  

the whole Arsenale space felt highly curated and as an audience member one was taken on an excellent journey. Some of the work that sticks is .....Shimabukn's Snow Monkey video which comments on isolation and dislocation from what we understand, Guan Xiao's David asks do we know anything anymore? Kader Attia moving and physical representation of transgender voice pattern through Indian movies. There is lots of what could be described as cultural appropriation but the work of Enrique Ramirez felt genuine and heartfelt but then it was filmed in an extraordinary space. lots of artists working with the book and showing their working process Sam Lewitt's work with light as books was an example of both, Jeremy Shaw explore states of transgender the moving documentary got to the heart of searching for meaning but constantly failing.....mournful, Pauline Curnier Jardin gave me my laugh out loud moment - in her film a woman lifts her skirt to reveal the head of Jesus talking to her from within her pubic hair, at first the cute video by Nevin Aladag of instruments being played by street furniture and children's playground rides was fun and frivolous but the absence of musicians started to take on a sinister tone. There is some excellent Book Art from around the world included in the main exhibition in the Arsenale - starting with a great show of work by John Latham, the obsessive notebooks of Abdullah Al Saadi, exquisite paintings of books by Liu Ye, glowing coloured books by Geng Jianyi, the truly gorgeous textile books of Maria Lai, the stunning research project around the idea of book as symbol by Sam Lewit , the solid earth books by Michelle Stuart and the obsessive text works of Irma Blank

2 days seeing collateral pavilions around Venice and I'm left with thoughts of the Welsh and Scottish Pavilions spinning in my head. Already a fan of Rachael Maclean but her video was gloriously blunt to the point of obvious when creating a fairytale for our time with good and evil well in their place. James Richards representing Wales has a combination of sound, video and print that worked so well in the space and with great content it was just beautiful.

then there was Damien Hirst at Punta Della Dogana and Palazzo Grassi - Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable Damien Hirst - excessive, unnecessary, brash  and overbearing but truly wonderful. The whole pointless show has clues if you look for them armed with a little bit of pop culture knowledge - an Egyptian goddess revealed itself through its tattoos to be Riannon, the likeness to Farrell Williams on another is startling, bodies based on Barbie, one of the weapons has to be out of a video game and I'm sure John Merrick was the model for Proteus - it is truly excessive - go see. I wish there was a book revealing all the hidden stories - I would buy.

joiningandmakingsense

decided to join instagram - https://www.instagram.com/les1bicknell/ it will be a documentation on my everyday activity that supports practice. my instagram profile image is me dealing with and being dealt by the wonderful Alfedo Jaar http://www.alfredojaar.net/main.html piece at MOMA - Lament of the images http://www.moma.org/collection/works/138623?locale=en I first saw it at The Tate in another iteration and then went to see it on my last two trips to New York making the pilgrimage to be altered. His work for the Chile Pavillion at the Venice Biennale was extraordinary you had to really be there to get the full experience, comming across it - but check out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFuAzBEOcMI

some films this week -  The 100 year old man who climbed out of the window and disappeared http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2113681/ a wonderful funny life affirming experience - in so many ways a better Forest Gump!  Parallels - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3479316/?ref_=nv_sr_1 nice idea but more of a tv series pilot as so many issues are either initiated in the last 5 minutes or left as cliff hangs  Dear white people - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2235108/?ref_=rvi_tt a quietly scathing look at racism and our role in it. the Aldeburgh festival threw up Tamsin Waley-Cohen on violin and James Baillieu on piano - a front row seat means that you really get the sense that playing an instrument is an endurance sport. the Debussy and Elgar were discordant and challenging - speaking of death, destruction and the context that they were created in - the new piece by Freya Waley-Cohen with its loops and forceful architecture was an interesting counter balance and gave space to consider our location. Looking forward to the pump house on Friday - The wild man of Orford a piece based on 'actual' legend http://myths.e2bn.org/mythsandlegends/origins63-the-wild-man-of-orford.html  and maybe stay to watch Dead Rat Orchestra playing salt, sawdust and 200 shards of micro-tuned steel. Turn the page book fair is this weekend in Norwich http://turnthepage.org.uk/ its great to see so many people who are connected to the MA Book Arts Course at Camberwell attending - we have a stand this year - and I see that Rosie Sherwood will launch her new poetry book and art installation 'The Ellentree' as well as Karen Apps having her own stand -  come along - it will be interesting as the selection panel - Sarah Bodman, Su Blackwell and Jules Allen bring a wealth of knowledge to their position as selectors.

headexplodinginveniceasever

So on the plane back from Venice - the Biennale was wondrous as ever with the Arsenale a more focused experience. I have a new set of images that will furnish new presentations at NUA and Camberwell. My head is full of images and moments that will keep me thinking for some time - the pavilion covered in tyres, the rebuilding of a familiar space as an interventionist minimal architectural event, Canada's 'shop', the sci-fi image of future space possibilities, being held hostage in a virtual reality studio, the violence of the South African pavilion leading to the idea of Goya making work from edited found CCTV footage of fighting and sexual activity in clubs, the many themes of oppression explored including the lost hope of the environment and private homosexual acts made public, a giant Russian fighter pilots head, terrorist breast feeding, hope in Latvian garages, a choir of engine noises in a novelty fun ride, a sad fair ride, Dellar's 'factory records' jukebox, the idea of flowers silently witnessing massive socio-political events, a room of staircases, windows of rain, a factory workers 'opera' in Beijing, a room of corn, the negative space of an imaginary building, an anchor the size of a car embedded in broken sheet glass, a room of shredded money, a room of blue sand, the loss of people and their languages, a room of dirt, flags their meaning obscured, crafts used to say 'something', a room of broken glass, games without rules, a book of photographic memories I tore open, the Olympic torch running in a Brazilian prison, a naked red woman dancing in an office, a bullet caught, a room of knives, mapping connections, documenting hope, Umberto Eco seeking out a book from a book lined labyrinth and getting me to think about memory - what is a list?

But my highlights have to be 5 film pieces all embedded within installations. Martyr construction by Theaster Gates https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OaIp3-n58tY destruction, desecration and hope, the silence of existing systems watching helplessly while new beginnings from the past are reenacted. Factory of the Sun by Hito Steyerl https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyqqiELBDZM set within a 'virtual motion capture studio' itself shown in a motion capture studio it stunningly explores notions of truth that supports and surrounds our understanding of the world. Ashes by Steve McQueen https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DFIn5d69VXE just tragically sad - reading about its conception helps a little, NoNoseKnows by Mika Rottenberg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8M9CFHk8P-Q my WTF moment - work undertaken by women, natural order undermined by capitalist pointlessness, truly odd and finally the haunting Never Say Goodbye by WuTien-Chang https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1arIe9iKlAs beautiful, magic, the presentation of a nostalgic future.

thinkimngandbreathingartinvenice

 abstract speaking - sharing uncertainty and collective

Israeli Pavilion 

 Odires Mlászho

 Thierry De Cordier and Richard Serra

 Danh Vo

Turkish Pavilion 

Four days at the Venice Biennale and as ever one could be there longer as there is so much to see. I managed to get to more collateral events this time as well as the two main sights. Where to start... I am still reeling as I then went onto Lake Garda for a break and read and read and read – but more of that later. The international aspect of the experience is so excellent, giving the opportunity to see work that is not usually accessible, especially from South America, Asia, Africa and Arabic countries.  Politics is always on the surface obviously, especially as many of the established pavilions have a national flag outside. The Israeli Pavilion was an extraordinary comment on land, ownership, sense of self and place. It was also quite exceptional in its storytelling, how the narrative of the idea was experienced.  There was a lot of‘re-organising’ or re-building pavilions alongside the presentation of process as outcome.  Some other highlights were – the book structures in the Brazilian Pavilion by Odires Mlászho, the whole feel of the Dutch Pavilion - Mark Manders, Room with Broken Sentence, the madness of the Spanish Pavillion by Lara Almarcegui and the wisdom of the Japanese Pavilion - abstract speaking - sharing uncertainty and collective acts which had wonderful answers for questions we are going to have to ask in the future. The Central Pavilion has so much to offer – one example is the beautiful relationship created between the paintings of Thierry De Cordier and the surface of the sculptures of Richard Serra

The work in the Arsenale was focused on the theme of the whole Biennale – The Encyclopedic Palace, and is a full on mental experience with excellent thoughtful work at every step and turn. Looking back at my photographs I realise that I have taken more images of National Pavilions at the end of huge building. The Lebanon Pavilion is an extraordinary narrative in print and film, the mesmerising films in the Turkish Pavilion and the Latvian Pavilion is such a magnificent revelation which you have to wait for.  

I am creating a lecture on the use and experience of textiles at the Biennale for NUA so there will be more images later but I have to show the work of Danh Vo.....

researchlifeandwork

Life at the moment is cluttered with unpicking and rebinding - but found time last week to research the Venice Biennale – working out which of the many collateral events away from the main sights I’m going to get to and looking at how to get to the exhibition at Palazzo Grassi – a space that I’ve never managed to get into but if its anything like its sister space Punta della Dogana which always has excellent shows within an awesome space it should be good.

Meanwhile celebrating difference on youtube!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkNEmKTuLnA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9MTGNaEXGM&feature=share