The GSK Contemporary Season opens at the Royal Academy on Thursday, you can see the slightly unwilling Grizedale contribution on the ground floor for free - the rest you have to pay for - it makes sense as it seems we and the artists have done it for free. There are some Rowlandson images that better illustrate our feelings but they are a little to explicit to post. This one is actually of the Royal Academy main staircase.

Posted by Adam Sutherland on 29/10/08 at 14:19 : 0 Comments

Topics: 'exploited' 'GSK' 'Royal Academy' 'Toadball'

Our great local supporter, South Lakeland Council, are advertising for a new Arts Officer. 

Deadline is Nov 10th, beg all your inspired friends to apply.

See more info on the post here

Posted by Karen Guthrie on 23/10/08 at 14:53 : 0 Comments

Topics: 'jobs'

Jen Lui's commission for Agrifashionista is now online at www.agrifashionista.tv
This is the second in a trilogy, the sequel to The Brethren of the
Stone: Comfortably Numb, made in 2006. This body of work came out of Jen's residency at Grizedale when we took her to Furness Abbey in Barrow-in-Furness (Cistercian founders of Lawson Park), Millom, Haverigg stone circle and Egremont. From this she developed a whole body of work concocted around a band of hooded, stone worshiping monks who were heavily into prog rock.
West Cumbria down to a tee I'd say and maybe this goes part way to explaing  why Alan Kane's daughter, on receiving a job offer as a nuclear physicist at BAE in Barrow, quickly arranged a transfer down south.
In not entirely unrelated way the protagonist of the this second chapter is introduced to the big city after a youth in the idyllic country, and must face various instances of
social and aesthetic alienation. He does not cope with it well, and
in the end, we see that his only way means of dealing with it is
violence. However, is his violence directed outwards, or inwards?
Jen Lui: "I worked with composer Ray Sweeten and Judith Hallet on a piece to
reflect this rift between the protagonist and the modern world. The
protagonist's voice is expressed though Pink Floyd's "Brain Damage"
translated into Latin, and re-written as medieval plainchant. The
modern world takes Black Sabbath's Iron Man translated into an
Italian late-era Romantic opera for female voice.

I also worked with composer Matthew Welch and the Depauw Tiger Pep
Band to create a marching band version of Black Sabbath's Iron Man,
that closely adheres to the original song in composition."

Go see http://www.agrifashionista.tv/home/

Next month sees the launch of William Pope L's commission and Nathaniel Mellors is up after Frieze week to film us dressed as neanderthals having a bar-b-que. Hang on.....

Posted by Alistair Hudson on 01/10/08 at 15:20