Support from all quarters for disability arts awards
An awards ceremony celebrating the best of Deaf and Disability Arts has received pledges of support from all quarters.
Photographer Mike McCartney, Council Leader Warren Bradley and disability arts writer and performer Mat Fraser have all spoken out about the NWDAF-organised awards, which will be presented on International Disabled Peoples' Day, December 3rd.
Mat Fraser said: "Deaf and Disability Arts are a vibrant and vital part of Britain's cultural landscape, and the DaDaFest Awards are a brilliant way to both value, respect and thank the artists, performers, photographers, painters, choreographers, comedians, strippers, poets, and play writers, in other words, the luminaries in their respective arts fields, who are brining our unique perspectives and exciting reinventions of what is and isn't possible for disabled artists, to the mainstream arts community, and therefore the world at large. It's a way of showing how we celebrate the highly professional level of skill and scintillating work that the winners have produced, much of which has been commissioned by NWDAF themselves."
The ceremony will take place at Liverpool's fantastic Arena and Convention Centre on the Mersey Waterfron with a dinner and auction of exciting cultural items from both disabled and non-disabled artists, as well as top-notch performances.
NWDAF patron, photographer Mike McCartney, said: "I'm really looking forward to attending this year's awards, where the standard of award nominees is consistently going up. The entertainment line up looks impressive in a great venue like the new ACC so it's a case of getting your tickets quick so you don't miss out… and don't forget, be there or be square!"
Awards are being presented in the following categories: Emerging Artist; Emerging Group or Company; Visual Artist; Performance Artist; Community Arts Award; Writers Award; New Media Award; Music Award, plus a special Lifetime Achievement Award.
There is only a short time to vote for your favourite Deaf or Disabled artists. Simply visit www.nwdaf.co.uk or call 0151 707 1733 for more information. Tickets for the award ceremony are now on sale, please call 0844 8000 400 or visit www.accliverpool.com/whatson/DaDaAwards.asp
We really enjoyed the performance of 'The Ball' at Novas last night. Fortunately, Liverpool-based artist Nicole Bartos has written a fine review for us.
19/11/2008
Notes on:
“The Ball” directed by Radu Nica –
“Radu Stanca” National Theatre from Sibiu, Romania - telling the history of a nation without words
The first Romanian theatre in the North-West of Britain, a challenge to Liverpool
Excellence and coherence were the main words that I had in mind when rethinking and reviewing the Romanian theatre performance I’ve just been privileged to see last evening 18th of November 2008, at the Contemporary Urban centre (CUC), Novas, Liverpool.
An incredible story-telling through contemporary dance and physical theatre and a journey that guided the eye and mind of the audience, through a sequential labyrinth of time and national Romanian history, during present, pre-second world war; Nazi occupation; soviet occupation and Stalinism; 60’s and it’s freedom; communism’s early years; the long dictatorship of Ceausescu regime; the 1989 Revolution and back to present.
Like many Romanians attending this performance, who lived under the Communist regime, through 70’s and 80’s Romania, I felt so touched to view the story without words of ‘The Ball’.
Directed by the young Radu Nica, from Sibiu this show in a post-modernist style, engaged us all on a journey of humanity and transformations through major historical realities; what it means a troubled history through chaos and destruction of human values and aspirations by politics, power and dictatorship, but also how great Romanian humour and theatre can be.
An amazing performance from 12 talented Romanian actors, a breath taking show; an evening to remember and a story to be told: Sibiu - Liverpool 2008, Romanian Connections.
Join us, on Thursday 20th of November 2008 at the CUC, 41-51 Greenland Street, Liverpool, for “Waiting for Godot” (Becket), directed by internationally renowned Silviu Purcãrete, and played by two of Romania’s most respected actors.
“Romanian Connections is financed through Promocult, the Romanian Government’s programme to promote Romanian culture in the European Union. With the generous support of The Embassy of Romania in the UK, The Romanian Cultural Institute in London and The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Romanian Connections are about continuity. Liverpool is European Capital of Culture 2008 – the successor of Sibiu European Capital of Culture 2007. Sibiu is landlocked in the Transylvanian plains and Liverpool is famous for its maritime history, but the two cities are connected by their enduring cosmopolitan and multicultural traditions.
Local communities ensured that in Sibiu – as in Liverpool – culture flourished and attained very high standards; and the most important connection is that theatre, and the arts in general, are the closest one can get to a universal language. So the Romanian soul, pathos and humour, and an idea of what Romania is, can be conveyed to UK audiences directly in “the language of the heart”.
These are the Romanian Connections. Laugh with us, cry with us, in the tradition of “râsu-plânsu” (laughter-crying) that best characterises the Romanian soul. But, most of all, we hope you will become a friend.
For further details contact us: mail@profusion.org.uk. For more information, including images and future press releases, please go to www.romanianculturalcentre.org.uk/connections” (Excerpt from Romanian Connections, press release)
Organisers: Ramona Mitrica & Mike Phillips, ProFusion International Creative Consultancy.
Text by N. Bartos, 19/11/2008
LIVERPOOL BIENNIAL 2008 VISITOR CENTRE AUCTION, SUNDAY 30 NOVEMBER.
Pick Yourself A Bargain and Even a Piece of Contemporary Art and Help Support Liverpool Biennial 2008
Sunday 30 November is the last day of Liverpool Biennial 2008 and organisers are holding an auction of materials from two of the MADE UP public realm art works, as well as some of the fixtures and fittings at the Liverpool Biennial Visitor Centre in the former ABC Cinema on Lime Street at 12 Noon.
Members of the public will be able to buy materials culled from from the MADE UP artworks: Manfredi Beninati’s installation, To Think of Something and Leandro Erlich’s Carousel. Materials up for grabs will include: furniture; soft furnishings and other household objects.
The Visitor Centre has played host to thousands of visitors who have started their tour of the International exhibition, MADE UP. Items for sale will also include brand new Continental touring bicycles (as used by volunteer Information assistants) and items such as Biennial ‘directors chairs’, a red couch and toys from the childrens’ play area.
Proceedings will be led by a special ‘guest auctioneer’ and the full exhibition catalogue is available to view from the Liverpool Biennial website on Thursday 20 November. For those interested in viewing the items, they will also be available to view in advance during the normal opening hours for the Visitor Centre, 10am – 6pm every day and 10am – 4pm at the Manfredi Beninati and Leandro Erlich sites (venues 4 and 12 on the Liverpool Biennial 2008 map).
There are only a few days to make the most of Liverpool Biennial 2008, before it closes on Sunday 30 November for another two years.
Liverpool Biennial Executive Director, Paul Smith, commented, “Liverpool Biennial’s Visitor Centre has been a great success, enabling many groups of visitors to get the most from MADE UP, as well as providing an opportunity to take a peek once more at the old ABC cinema, the site for Annette Messager’s installation. Come along to the auction, pick up a bargain, take away a piece of international contemporary art and grab a last look at the ABC before it is closed up again – and of course there is still time to get round Liverpool Biennial 2008!”.
Sunday 30 November 12.00 Noon, Visitor Centre opens 10.00am. Free.
For further information Please contact: 0845 220 2800
Liverpool Biennial 2008: Public Auction
Sunday 30 November 2008
12.00 Noon, Visitor Centre opens 10.00am
Information 0845 220 2800
www.biennial.com
News from Liverpool University which I think I understand...
Evolution of the visual system is key to abstract art
Liverpool, UK - 17 November 2008: Famous works of abstract art achieve popularity by using shapes that resonate with the neural mechanisms in the brain linked to visual information, a psychologist at the University of Liverpool has discovered.
Humans make aesthetic judgements about shapes and forms quickly and easily, preferring certain shapes to others, even in the absence of any narrative. Dr Richard Latto, from the University’s Psychology department, has discovered that these shapes resonate with the processing properties of the human visual system, which is responsible for analysing what we have seen.
Dr Latto said: “Humans inherit a basic visual system through genetics. That system provides very selective information about the world around us. It has evolved to provide only the information that we need to survive - for example, we cannot see most electromagnetic radiation or follow the leg movement of a galloping horse.
“Of course our visual systems can be influenced by social factors, like fashion and the number of abstract images that we expose ourselves to, but evolution had given us some genetically determined responses to certain shapes and forms. In popular abstract works such as Matisse’s The Snail (1963), Mondrian’s Composition with Red, Blue and Yellow (1930), and Malevich’s Supremus No. 50 (1915), the artists start with a blank canvas and arrange shapes and colours in a way that is aesthetically pleasing, using their own brain to monitor the effect.
“We like to look at the human body or parts of the body like the face and hands, stylised representations like stick figures and organic forms of the kind incorporated into the work of Salvador Dali and Francis Bacon. Certain landscapes and horizontal and vertical lines are also popular because they resonate with our visual systems, which have been tuned by evolution and experience to respond particularly to these biologically and socially important stimuli.
“We know that neurons in the brain need to be kept active to flourish and develop, so it is important for the visual system to be stimulated and sometimes pushed to the limit to function effectively. As with other adaptive behaviours, we have evolved a mechanism for encouraging this by rewarding ourselves with good feelings. Perhaps we enjoy looking at faces, landscapes and Mondrian’s work because it is good for us and good for our brains.”
Dr Latto added: “Artists were experimenting with abstract shapes long before scientists began analysing our nature of perception. Through observation or trial-and-error, artists have been identifying these aesthetic primitives - critical shapes and arrangements - and have indirectly defined the nature of our visual processes. In purely abstract painting, as with much music, form is all we have. Popular works have shown that essentially we like looking at what we are good at seeing.”
On the last Thursday of every month Tate Liverpool opens its doors until 21.00 for an evening of music, food, drink and the very best modern and contemporary art.
November’s Late at Tate on Thursday 27 November will be the last of the year, acting as Tate Liverpool’s unofficial closing ceremony for the Liverpool Biennial. For those who have missed it so far, or wish to catch their favourite work before the end of the show, the Gallery is offering (for one night only), free admission to the MADE UP exhibition. Throughout the evening, visitors can also indulge in some late night Christmas shopping in the Tate Shop - stocked with new and exciting gifts for culture vultures. Performances and screenings by internationally renowned audiovisual talent will animate the foyer from 18.00 – 21.00 for the audiovisual event Nelco’s AV Social.
A major highlight of November’s Late at Tate is a special ‘In Conversation’ event with artists Adrian Ghenie (Romania) and New York based Adam Cvijanovic, chaired by Simon Grant, Editor of Tate Etc Magazine (18.00–19.30). Ghenie and Cvijanovic, currently displaying new work at Tate Liverpool, will use this forum to discuss their individual interpretations of the concept of MADE UP, offering an enlightening and informative insight into the creative processes of these two compelling painters. This talk forms part of the Romanian Connections programme of cultural events across Liverpool during the month of November. Tickets cost £7 and £5.50 (concessions). To book contact Tate Liverpool on 0151 702 7400. In Conversation with Ghenie and Cvijanovic has been made possible by the generous support of the Ratiu Foundation and Romanian Cultural Centre.
The screening line-up for Nelco’s AV Social gathers audiovisual artists such as animator Max Hattler (dubbed “one of the world’s most exciting young animators” by Dazed and Confused), and Ben Sheppee, the Tokyo-based head of VJ label Lightrhythm Visuals. Live performances include Oli Sorenson (VJ Anyone), Machine Elements, who have recently performed alongside Wu-Tang Clan at Futuresonic 2008 and VJ Movement, commissioned in the past by big names such as Calvin Harris and Ministry of Sound.
Hive Twilight City 4: Uncanny Space
Saturday 6th December
Venue: The Kazimier, 4-5 Wolstenholme Square, Liverpool L1 4JJ
Time: 8pm - Late
Cost: £5
"I would work through the night and see the city waking up - the face without the make-up. At night, you would see the heat rising in the air from the stacks of the old factory buildings. I see that view, and I see the confusion of a city lost in transition from one age to another."
Derrick May on Detroit
As a new city slowly emerges from amidst the dust and clatter of construction, Hive's final Twilight City event - Uncanny Space – simultaneously sounds an elegy to Liverpool’s past whilst heralding the white heat of its future through a celebration of the best in contemporary electronica and techno. Held in one of the city’s most exciting venues, each performance will revel in the endless possibilities of electronic music to move us both physically and spiritually from the past to the future.
Alva Noto (Carsten Nicolai, Raster-Noton)
Founded in 1996, Raster-Noton has become one of the world’s leading electronic music labels; its minimal aesthetic extends beyond the realm of music into art and design and such breadth was rewarded with the coveted Ars Electronica prize in 2000. As Alva Noto, co-founder Carsten Nicolai has worked with the likes of Ryiuchi Sakamoto and Bjork and here presents his latest album, Unitxt. Based on the simple concept of digitizing the everyday content of his wallet, Unitxt sees compellingly precise rhythms, cavernous bass and robotic melody collide in a telling critique of the digital nature of contemporary existence.
http://www.alvanoto.com
http://www.raster-noton.net
Uusitalo (Vladislav Delay)
Uusitalo means ‘new house’ in Finnish, country of origin of Berlin based Sasu Ripatti whose many monikers include Luomo and Vladislav Delay. ‘Electronica’s omni-musician’ according to The Wire, each of Ripatti’s guises offers up a brand new take on vocal house, abstract techno and exploratory sound; reflecting on a past indebted to dub and funk whilst challenging the orthodoxy of the dancefloor.
http://www.vladislavdelay.com
Donnacha Costello (Minimise)
Revered across Europe as a pioneer of minimal techno, Donnacha Costello is perhaps one of the most important producers working in contemporary dance music. His recent Color Series releases beautifully captured the joy of analogue sound and were heralded as a milestone in contemporary techno. Unmissable machine music and a fitting finale to Hive Twilight City.
http://www.minimise.com
Hive Visual Artists
Utilising the amazing Kazimier space to its fullest extent, Hive’s Visual Artists will provide an unforgettable collage of film, graphics, imagery and light.
Plus Hive DJs
Tickets available online and from Probe shortly
www.thehivecollective.co.uk
Liverpool artwork of the week 44. West Tower photograph by John Davies for Cities on the Edge Photography Project. Exhibiting at Novas CUC 14 November - 18 December 2008
You've probably seen this picture already on all the publicity material but it really is a stunning image. It took me a while to realise it was Liverpool, a great example of how our waterfront has changed in recent years.
Curated by John Davies, The Cities on the Edge Photography Project invited 6 European photographers to make new work in Liverpool for 2008.
This is an unique initiative which is a collaboration between 6 port cities in 6 different European countries.
The project will result in an exhibition and publication highlighting Liverpool in relationship to Marseille, Naples, Gdansk, Bremen and Istanbul.
This exhibition coincides with the book 'Cities On The Edge' published by Liverpool University Press in November 2008. Edited by John Davies with introduction text by Franco Bianchini. 72 colour and B&W photographs from the six cities and text in all six languages. ISBN 9781846311864 £24.95 hb.
Novas CUC NW
Try not to miss the second day of the Artists' Book Fair at 11 Wolstenholme Sq. this weekend, there's a lot of really clever and beautiful work on show and for sale.
Its open from 11.00 to 16.00 today (Sunday).
Also there should be the Living Market just round the corner in the CCP Car Park building on Duke St. at the same time.
I love the Jam Butty Mine installation and the ceramic cakes. Its all in the Studio Gallery on the 1st floor at Tate Liverpool. Ends on 19 November 2008
In The Frame is a Mencap project that has been happening with Tate Liverpool since 2006, sponsored by Nokia. The In the Frame group of 10 people with a learning disability have produced The Art Lover's Guide.
The group has also launched an art exhibition sponsored by the Liverpool Culture Company, at Tate Liverpool as part of Liverpool 08. It is open from 14 to 19 November (gallery closed 17 November). The exhibition, called In My Liverpool Home, is part of Liverpool 08.
The In the Frame group have devised and are curating In My Liverpool Home. They helped run art workshops around Liverpool in September to help people who wanted to send in artwork. Over 100 entries were sent in and the group had a hard job picking a shortlist. In My Liverpool Home shows a fantastic range of paintings, photography, models, crafts, ceramics and video.
More details on the excellent new website
http://www.artspider.org.uk/
Nathan Pendlebury now has a limited number of calendars available. Wall calendars are just £9.99, and desk calendars are just £4.99. They can each be viewed at his website with the following link.
http://www.erpenstudios.co.uk/shop.htm