A month long celebration of art events
November 2009
Tate ARTIST ROOMS, a series of artists’ talks, 15 artists in 15 days, an interview with Akenfield author Ronald Blythe – all mark firstsite’s 15th year.
firstsite, the arts organisation based in Colchester, marks its 15th birthday with a series of events, commissions and exhibitions bringing life changing and relevant contemporary art to the local and wider community. firstsite has built a reputation for showing work by a diverse range of international, national and emerging artists. Now in its 15th year firstsite looks back at its legacy and track record of exciting programmes and commissions new work to mark the occasion, demonstrating its strength in working with artists despite not having a permanent home to exhibit the work.
In its first 15 years, firstsite has created its own unique and enviable blend of artistic programming, learning opportunities, and developing artist support.
As well as supporting local artists, firstsite has been responsible for bringing internationally renowned artists to Colchester and the East of England. Highlights include: Louise Bourgeois (1996); Yoko Ono – ‘Have you Seen the Horizon Lately’ (1998); and Antony Gormley’s ‘Field for the British Isles’ (1999).
firstsite has published artists’ monographs since the mid 1990s giving now significant artists their first publication including Mariele Neudecker; Paul Rooney, Hiraki Sawa and Leo Fitzmaurice.
firstsite has always showcased East of England talent presenting the first full retrospectives of Masterweaver Peter Collingwood (1996) and painter Roderic Barrett (1997). Both exhibitions went on to tour nationally and internationally as well as supporting new artists including – Simon Carter; James Dodds; Dale Devereux Barker and Sarah Sabin.
Events to mark firstsite’s 15th birthday include:
Tate ARTISTS ROOMS
Dial H-I-S-T-O-R-Y by Johan Grimonprez
3rd November – 28 November 2009
Part of the acclaimed ARTIST ROOMS programme, firstsite is presenting this work in a very different location.
Taking place in a converted shipping container in the grounds of Colchester Institute’s School of Art & Design, Grimonprez’s acclaimed documentary on plane hijacking and modern society’s morbid fascination with terror will be screened. Using found news footage of the media’s portrayal of terrorism, the piece is at once a critique and an eerie prediction of the climate of fear we currently live in.
It is particularly timely for firstsite to be showing this work as part of Tate ARTIST ROOMS as it was originally shown as part of firstsite’s exhibition Trauma which opened the week of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The film has remained a poignant moment in firstsite’s 15 year history.
ARTIST ROOMS
Tate and National Galleries of Scotland. Acquired jointly through The d’Offay Donation with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and The Art Fund 2008
15 artists, 15 days
23 November – 12 December 2009
To launch firstsite’s Artist Space programme and to mark the organisation’s 15th birthday, 15 artists, 15 days will begin on 23 November.
Based on an open submission process, 15 one-day artistic residencies will take place in Colchester. The artists, all from the East of England, will create their work in full view of the public, allowing the processes and ideas behind their art to be demystified. This initiative is developed as part of firstsite’s ‘Artist Space’ programme, a new initiative which is supported by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.
Queen and Country talks programme
26th October and 9th November 2009
Working in partnership with the University of Essex, firstsite has devised a programme of talks to complement the exhibition of Queen and Country by internationally renowned artist Steve McQueen at the University of Essex Gallery in Colchester. The talks programme includes:
Bearing witness: The role of war artists in the 21st century
Acclaimed artists Paul Seawright and David Cotterrell will be talking about their experiences of working in Afghanistan as representatives of the Imperial War Museum and the Wellcome Trust.
Conflict and flute bands: the Troubles in Northern Ireland
Scottish artist Roderick Buchanan will discuss his current work on a film which explores the legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Commissioned by the Imperial War Museum in 2008, Buchanan focuses on Loyalist and Republican flute bands, considering how war and conflict shapes the lives of band members.
Home Fires Burning: supporting the soldiers of the Great War
Letters are a way of communicating and containing the pain of war. They are poignant reminders of the vulnerability of soldiers and the conflicting nature of their emotions and the tasks they are required to carry out. Mike Roper, from the University of Essex’s Department of Sociology will draw on his recent book The Secret Battle: Emotional Survival in the Great War to discuss these issues.
All the talks are opportunities to hear about a subject which is particularly relevant in a town whose garrison is an important British Army base.
In conversation with Ronald Blythe
Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Akenfield, a portrait of an English village
1st November 2009 2.30 – 4pm
To mark 40 years since its publication, critic and writer Ian Collins will be in conversation with the prolific writer Ronald Blythe about his seminal book Akenfield.
Described by Roger Deakin as ‘subtle and compassionate’ and by John Updike as ‘exquisite’, Akenfield is a portrait of an English village in the middle years of the 1960s, charting the stories of three generations of its inhabitants. Blythe combined the experiences of people from the village of Charsfield in Suffolk, the author’s own adjoining village of Debach, and a few surrounding hamlets. Considered to be an enduring record of life on the land, firstsite invites the novelist to discuss his works, the land and people of the East of England with the critic Ian Collins.
This event is part of a series of talks, events and films – Here in the East – commissioned by firstsite which celebrate artistic legacy, new talent and sense of place.
Contacts:
For further information / Use of pictures / Interviews
Idea Generation: +44(0)20 7749 6850
Ellen Harrison: ellen@ideageneration.co.uk
Natalie Tacq: natalie@ideageneration.co.uk
firstsite website
