Yorkshire Life/ The Glory of the Night Skies

Journalist Amanda Brown interviewed me about my solo exhibition Dark Reflections, which is open until 03 April. In the interview, I discussed where my interest in the night sky began and what inspired the works in my exhibition.

Solo Exhibition/ Dark Reflections

Open 19 February - 3 April
Private View 18 February 6PM
Meet the Artist 19 February 11AM + 1.15PM

Dark Reflections/
Inspired by… Gallery, North York Moors National Park

Through this exhibition, I invite the audience to share their reflections on our relationship with the night sky, and how it frames how we perceive the climate crisis. How does looking into our galaxy change your thinking about the deep time history of our planet, in which the flora and fauna around us has developed over billions of years?

During my residency I spent time in the landscape recording the sounds of the environment with different types of microphones and used digital cameras and a 5 x 4 camera to photograph it. I experienced a new type of landscape, and imagined how it has changed over Earth’s history. 

Having access to dark skies helps to shape my thinking about the incredibly old age of our planet. Whilst looking out into the night I think about how each day passed with a sunset and a sunrise for billions of years before human eyes ever perceived the myriad of colours on display. When we think of long periods of geologic history, it is hard to imagine the passing of individual days and nights as we know them.

My sound and photographic installation titled Ascending explores the formation and development of our landscapes inviting the viewer to shift their thinking from ‘landscape to planet’. Audience members are asked to contribute to my piece Thinking Through the Night, by taking an envelope home with them, containing a postcard and a set of instructions for sharing their thoughts about our view of the night sky, and then posting it back to the gallery where it will be displayed next to my work.

Read more here.

Jean Harrison Commission

I was really pleased to be selected for the Jean Harrison Commission at the The Museum of North Craven Life at The Folly in Settle, North Yorkshire. Jean was a Settle-based poet and author who died in 2020 and her extensive contemporary poetry library is now housed at The Folly.

Jean's work spanned many themes from sci-fi and dystopia, to families, place and space. Her work explored what it means to be a person in a changing environment, whether that environment is a far-flung distant future, a small town in the Yorkshire Dales or Ghana where Jean worked as a teacher for much of her life.

The commission is funded by Arts Council England. I will create a new work in response to some of Jean's writing for display later this year.

Pale Blue Dot Collective - Harmonic Islands Exhibition

I am thrilled to share Pale Blue Dot Collectives upcoming exhibition at the Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora, in Christchurch Aotearoa New Zealand. The exhibition is open from 17 - 30 January 2022.

‘Through sound, we journey back to ancient Aotearoa, to imagine the forests before they were ever seen by human eyes. As we move from the water to the forest, pushing through dense vegetation, we encounter mysterious sounds eluding to species that are no longer part of our landscape. Through a deep-time perspective, we invite you into a new way of seeing the familiar species that we share our world with and explore the cosmic importance of our habitats.

Pale Blue Dot Collective is the collective name of Louise Beer and John Hooper. Louise spent several weeks in residence on behalf of the collective in September 2020. During the residency, Louise travelled around the Ōtautahi Christchurch area and spent time field recording and photographing the forests and landscapes. The artists worked across oceans to develop this work whilst separated by pandemic restrictions.

Together, the artists endeavour to bring a new perspective about the detrimental impact of the climate crisis, not only to humanity but to all life and all environments. Framing the impact through the eyes of evolution and the immense time period it has taken for each form of life to arrive at this point, they create a space for discussion around the damage we are collectively participating in and its universal impact.

Louise lived in Ōtepoti Dunedin before moving to the UK as a teenager. John was born in Preston, UK, and they live and work in Margate, UK.’

Find out more here.

Auckland University of Technology/ The World of Light Exhibition

Under the Fading Light has been selected for the Auckland University of Technology The World of Light Exhibition. The exhibition is currently online until next year when it will move to a physical space, due to Covid restrictions.

The World of Light (2021) is a forum for creative expressions, understandings and enlightenment across design, science, Māori and indigenous development, education, art, creative technologies and transdisciplinary research. Hosted by Auckland University of Technology in association with Artweek Auckland 2021.

The other wonderful artists in the exhibition are:

Alex Billingham
Aurelie Crisetig
Ayshia Taskin & Daniele Bongiovanni
Bharati Kapadia
Bob Bicknell-Knight
Carol Sowden
Caroline Areskog Jones
David Anthony Sant
David Ian Bickley
Hye Rim Lee
Jonathan Armour
Kate Aries
Nicola Rae
Robert Jarvis
Shahar Tuchner
Yula Kim

Visit the exhibition here.

CreaTures ATNC Curatorial and Creative Residency

I am so incredibly excited to share that I will be the new Art Tech Nature Culture Resident for their year long Curatorial and Creative Residency from this September.

’Art Tech Nature Culture (ATNC) is a global community of practice which explores the creative possibilities of ecological regeneration. In precarious times, how can we build new ways forward that challenge the inequalities of the status quo? Our ways of addressing this and our backgrounds are diverse, but we are united by a shared interest in using creative practices (e.g. arts, design, culture, hacking, research, activism) to explore alternative futures that rethink, rebuild and heal." There are currently around 300 members.

I will be working with the members from all over the world to create an exciting programme of discussions, workshops and events that explore the threads that run through our environmental practices.

This residency is funded by the CreaTures project which is affiliated with 11 partners, including the University of Sussex, Aalto University, RMIT University, Utrecht University, Zemos98, Sniffer, Superflux, Kersnikova, Hellon, Furtherfield, OKFI. The CreaTures project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.

Find out more about CreaTures here and the ATNC here.

Amant Siena Reflections

Whilst I was on the Amant Siena Residency in Tuscany, Italy, I spent some time with a wonderful astronomer called Alessandro Marchini after attending his night sky event, ‘Stelle in Musica’ at Vitaleta Chapel. The event included live music, to ‘open us up to see the stars’ before being guided around the night sky with some very impressive lasers. Later, we looked through the telescopes and saw Saturn and Jupiter and it’s moons. It was fascinating seeing the other artists and Amant curators experiencing seeing these planets, some for the first time. We talked about our passion for natural darkness and the implication of light pollution and satellites on his research.

A couple of weeks later I went to visit Alessandro at the Università degli Studi di Siena where he is based. Alessandro is the director of the university’s Astronomical Observatory and he has published more than 100 papers regarding his research about asteroids, variable stars, extrasolar planets and optical monitoring of blazars. For his commitment to the popularisation of Astronomy, he has been honoured by having an asteroid (55196 Marchini) named after him.

The first time that I visited Alessandro in Siena, we took this magnificent picture of the moon from the observatory above us, at around midday. Because of the intense sunlight, it was not possible to get it 100% sharp. It was incredible to open the observatory to see the historic buildings of Siena and photograph the moon surrounded by darkness. It is definitely my favourite photograph of the moon.

Above and Below – Ancient Materials: Virtual Arts-Science Residency

Pale Blue Dot Collective will be presenting a talk for 'Above and Below – Ancient Materials: Virtual Arts-Science Residency' by Mayes Creative and Royal Astronomical Society ✨ The online residency runs from 11 – 15 Oct 2021. You can apply via CuratorSpace

'Framing the Universe

Pale Blue Dot Collective will present a series of works that explore the world around us, from the coastline of Margate to the endless skies of Aotearoa New Zealand.

Through their shared practice, the artists endeavour to bring a new perspective about the detrimental impact of the climate crisis, not only to humanity but to all life and all environments. Framing the impact through the eyes of evolution and the immense time period it has taken for each form of life to arrive at this point, the artists want to create a space for discussion around the damage we are collectively participating in and its universal impact.

The duo have been commissioned by Bodleian Library x Fusion Arts, Oxford, Ramsgate Festival of Sound, Ramsgate, Nablus Festival, Palestine and are creating a sound based exhibition for the Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora in Aotearoa New Zealand. In 2022, the artists will take residence at BigCi in the Blue Mountains, Australia, as the Environmental Award 2020 winners. Earlier this year the artists took part in the Margate School: Art, Society, Nature: Photography Residency 2021, Margate.'

Find out more here.

Meeting of the Waters: Locative Media Oceania

I am really thrilled to have been selected for an online creative and educational programme called 'Meeting of the Waters: Locative Media Oceania' which will run from 18 September to 4 October. The course is hosted by the Centre of Applied Water Science at the @University of Canberra in Australia.

The programme is an online creative and educational program exploring the themes of water, climate change, cultural connections to place, ecosystems health and deep time. I will learn how to use locative media technologies and other collaborative tools to codesign projects concentrating these themes. There are 36 participants in total from across the world, and together we will develop location based artworks about the Oceania region. The themes focus on a shared concern and the need to act for the restoration of ecosystems, living with climate change, plus the impacts of forced migration and the loss of biodiversity.

There is an incredible list of speakers, including Tracey M Benson, Tyson Yunkaporta, Lisa Roberts, Sandy Sur, Michelle Maloney, Andrew Constable, Kate Genevieve @chroma.space , Nola Turner-Jenson, Desna Whaanga-Schollum, Leah Barclay, Brendan Kennedy, Lee Joachim, Bruce Shillingsworth, Josiah Jordan, Nina Czegledy, Pasha Ian Clothier and Trudy Lane.

This image was taken at an expansive beach called Birdlings Flat, looking out at the Pacific Ocean on the Banks Peninsula in Aotearoa New Zealand. I took the image almost a year ago, whilst on a Pale Blue Dot Collective residency at The Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora Christchurch, Aotearoa New Zealand

Read more about the programme here.

Birdlings Flat, Aotearoa New Zealand

North York Moors Dark Sky Residency with Solo Exhibition

I am overjoyed to be able to share that earlier this year I was selected for the North York Moors Dark Sky Residency with a solo exhibition at Inspired by… gallery, located at The Moors National Park Centre at Danby. The exhibition space is absolutely beautiful. My solo exhibition will take place in 2022.

Just before I came to Italy I began my residency on the Moors. I have never encountered this type of landscape before - here is a 5x4 photograph of one of the many incredible vistas.

I am going to be expanding on my research into the philosophical and ecological importance of natural darkness in a new project titled 'Dark Reflections'. To begin my research for the residency, I met with Mike Hawtin who helped the North York Moors to become an International Dark Sky Reserve, and Richard Darn, their dark skies consultant, supporter and professional astronomer.

‘I will further my research into how natural darkness impacts our perception of the fragility of nature and how it can inspire positive environmental change. I will create a body of work using photography, installation, sound and a participatory element.

My practice has been fundamentally inspired by the change in my relationship with the night sky. I lived in Aotearoa New Zealand for 16 years, before moving to London. In NZ, I spent a lot of time in mountainous areas close to a dark sky reserve which opened a window into the magnificence and fragility of our environment, in contrast to the endless cosmic landscape. 

I believe that as light pollution increases across the world, we will spin further into an exponential spiral of decline due to not having this visual contrast. It is fantastic news that the North York Moors has received a Dark Sky Park accolade. It is a very important moment to explore why protecting natural darkness is imperative to the psychology of the climate crisis.

My research will have two strands. The first aspect will be the philosophical impact of natural darkness, and the rise of light pollution. The second will be in depth research into the biological impacts of light pollution on the flora and fauna of the North York Moors.’

COSMIC PERSPECTIVES/ A (C)OSMOSIS ART IN-BETWEEN DISCIPLINES

In 2020, I collaborated with Melanie King, Rebecca Huxley, Becky Lyon, Natasha Sabatini and Hannah Pratt on a paper titled “Cosmic Perspectives” for “A (C)osmosis Art in-between Disciplines”, edited by Dr Ioannis Michaloudis and Dr Yuri Tanaka. There is a forward by Frank White.

”Cosmic Perspectives” looks back at Lumen’s 2018 Cosmic Perspectives exhibition at Ugly Duck, We discuss our inspirations for the exhibition as well as individual artworks.

“A (C)osmosis Art in-between Disciplines”

ISBN: 1-5275-7163-7
ISBN13: 978-1-5275-7163-1
Release Date: 13th August 2021
Pages: 160
Price: £61.99
Purchase here.

The relationship of humankind to the cosmos has a very long history, and has raised many more questions than can be adequately answered. Why has the cosmos been a source of awe and wonder since the beginning of civilisations? How are the arts of today related to our engagement with the cosmos? Who are the contemporary practitioners working in this field? This volume is the first publication on this particular theme written for a general audience, and initiates a discourse on art inspired and driven by the fact that humans are enthusiastic observers of Earth and the universe surrounding it. Furthermore, by proposing the parenthetic idea of (C)osmosis Art, the book serves to introduce a new conceptual framework intrigued and inspired by the interactions between art, science and technology

Dr Ioannis Michaloudis has experimented with NASA’s nanomaterial silica aerogel as a sculptural medium, and is the first visual artist worldwide using this ethereal material in art. Although originally designed as a space technology material to capture stardust and act as a spacecraft insulator, he has resituated this material into a practice which is allegorical of the creation of sky, clouds and the ether.

Yuri Tanaka is currently a Postdoctoral Researcher at Tokyo University of the Arts, where she received her PhD. She is also a Visiting Researcher at Kyoto City University of Arts, a Visiting Scientist at CERN, and the Head of the Cosmic Art Research Committee. Her work pursues the creation of a collaboration mediated by ‘the universe’ as a mutually acceptable idea among diverse experts.

super/collider Residency at SPACER Studios

super/collider are pleased to announce a year long residency with SPACER, Ramsgate. We will have a studio at SPACER, and will investigate the climate related issues facing the area of Thanet, UK.

super/collider will be working on a project entitled “Submerged Landscapes”, building on Melanie King’s recent Mural commission by the same name.

We will document the landscape in a range of different formats including casting, sound recordings and photography.

We will work in the spirit of Donna Haraways concept of “Situated Knowledge”, using a number of different multi-sensory recording methods to explore the landscape. We will work reflexively, responding to the landscape as we find it and writing impressions of our experiences. We aim to “immerse” ourselves in the landscape and knit together our project slowly over time.

We will work towards an immersive installation that will be exhibited in Ramsgate.
You can find out more about our residency on the SPACER website.

Amant Siena Residency

I am delighted to share that I was nominated for the Amant Siena Residency in Chiusure, Italy. I will be spending 5 weeks there from 1 August. The funded residency will allow me time and space to further my research into the philosophical and biological importance of natural darkness. I will explore the Crete Senesi landscape using photography and sound recording, focusing on the geological history of the area.

'Amant is a non-profit arts organization fostering experimentation and dialogue through exhibitions, public programs, and residencies at its two locales: the New York City borough of Brooklyn and the Tuscan village of Chiusure in the heart of the Siena province.

As a process-oriented platform, Amant arrives at a moment when the relationship between institutions and wider developments within arts and culture is being revisited—and challenged. We pursue yearly thematics that emanate from a diversity of social and political contexts, supporting shared modes of production and decision-making. More than “disciplines” we focus on “practices”, offering artists the time and conditions to crucially engage with their work. 

Amant provides a public forum that supports both established and under-recognized artists working across diverse creative fields. We are committed to participating in cultural partnerships with like-minded organizations in the US and abroad, while activating an ongoing conversation with our local community.

The organization also hosts two residency programs in New York and Siena that are at the center of our activities. By emphasizing this commitment to process, Amant remains responsive to the ever-changing dynamics between artists, institutions, and their audiences.'

Read more about the residency and other resident artists and writers here.

Images: Amant Foundation website

super/collider Climate Breakdown Residency at Spacer Studios

super/collider is delighted to share that we have been selected for the year long Spacer Climate Breakdown Residency 2021.

‘For over a decade, SPACER has been making work and transforming its studio practice in response to the Anthropocene. We are on a journey, learning how we can both mitigate climate breakdown and its impact, as well as adapt to our potential future.

So far, all our research and work has happened behind our studio doors, but we are ready to seek collaboration with those who are also responding to these existential threats.

Last month we asked if anyone would like to join our studio community for a year, to develop work in response to Thanet’s climate emergency.

We are thrilled to announce that after reading the many exciting applications, super/collider will be joining us from July 2021 until June 2022.

Artist duo – super/collider –  (Louise Beer and Melanie King) – are  based in Thanet. They work across the creative industries, exploring science from a pop cultural position – bringing its wonders to new audiences through public events, worldwide expeditions, self-published books and curated products.

Recently they have curated events with Science Museum, Ace Hotel, Soho House, TATE Britain, Second Home, Turner Contemporary and Faith In Strangers.

Louise uses installation, moving image, photography and sound to explore humanity’s evolving understanding of Earth’s environments and the cosmos. She creates objects and experiences that reflect the incomprehensible nature of reality, from the ocean floor to the night sky, in order to highlight humanity’s infancy of understanding of the cosmos and that we remain in a time where even the implausible is possible.

The purpose of Melanie’s research is to demonstrate the intimate connection between celestial objects (sun, moon, stars), photographic material and the natural world. Melanie is currently researching sustainable photographic processes, to minimise the environmental impact of her artistic practice and subsequently has been developing a body of work called ‘Submerged Landscapes’ – an ongoing project where she is documenting the areas of Thanet soon to be submerged, using the materiality of the sea within the production of the work.

super/collider propose to build on this work.

“We would like to work in the spirit of Donna Haraway’s concept of “Situated Knowledge”, using a number of different multi-sensory recording methods to explore the landscape. We would like to work reflexively, responding to the landscape as we find it and writing impressions of our experiences. We would like to “immerse” ourselves in the landscape and knit together our project slowly over time.”’

Artquest The Light of Day: Shortlist Award

I was really pleased that my piece 'Vision Fields' was selected to be part of the shortlisted group of artists who will be profiled on Artquest social media as part of their 'The Light of Day' open call. The piece was to be part of EXIT - Seeking Fluidity New Media Art show at Ugly Duck curated by the wonderful Deen Atger in 2020.

This piece reflects the infinite possibilities of the nature of reality. Using simple materials, I have created the illusion of an expanding planet-scape within a confined area. The accompanying sound piece aims to create a feeling of time passing, but never ending. The piece intends to invite the viewers to think about the vastness of our universe, and consider the time passing on distant worlds, in this galaxy and those unimaginably far away. See more images on the link above.⠀

New Commission: Ramsgate Festival of Sound

We are delighted to share that Pale Blue Dot Collective has been commissioned by Ramsgate Festival of Sound to make a new sound piece called 'Overland Undersea'. We will be using field recordings taken around the area to create an immersive sound experience for the festival. The dates of the festival are 27 August - 05 September. We will share more about our sound piece soon.

Floating in Space

Pale Blue Dot Collective has a new series of work on display at the Margate School. The pieces were developed during the Margate School: Art, Society, Nature: Photography Residency 2021.

Read more about the work here, and purchase prints here.

Bodleian Library x Fusion Arts Sound Commission

We are thrilled to share that Pale Blue Dot Collective have been commissioned to create a sound piece for the upcoming Bodleian Library exhibition titled ‘Sensational Books’. In 2020, Pale Blue Dot Collective was selected to visit the libraries and view some of the incredible collection. We were then invited to submit an idea for a commission which we will share more about soon.

We will be exploring a series of historical texts as well as recording sounds in the libraries.

‘Professor Emma Smith, University of Oxford and Kathryn Rudy, an art historian, medievalist and weaver based at the University of St Andrews are exploring encounters with the book beyond reading. Fusion Arts is collaborating with the Bodleian Libraries to work with artists to explore the book as an object engaging senses beyond sight in the exhibition room and explore the sonic qualities of library material.

The Sensational Books project explores the book as an object: the materials used, the sizing and shaping, the interpretation and experimentation of format, evoking the people and the spaces connected to the life of a book, including the relationship between the digital and the physical.

Following a workshop at the Weston Library, artists were invited to submit proposals that respond sonically to the exhibits and reveal aspects of the immersive experience of the book. These artworks will form part of the Weston Library’s Exhibition Sensational Books.’

Architecture & Environment: Reinventing the City

I am thrilled to be on the panel at the Always Possible Architecture & Environment: Reinventing the City talk on 11 June.

The event will be a roundtable discussion with some of the most exciting new and established designers, artists and planners in Kent - exploring a better future for our urban landscapes. 

This one day summit is part of South East Creatives, delivered by always possible in collaboration with Kent County Council.

See full programme at www.alwayspossible.co.uk/design

Toyo CX45

I am really excited to share that I have recently purchased a second hand Toyo CX45 mono rail camera. Learning how to use this camera is part of my Arts Council England DYCP project. I am really excited to learn how to use it both inside and outside of the studio!