It’s not often people in the early stages of an art career get the opportunity to install an entire body of work. After reaching the final stages of an open call for Quad/Format Festival’s Future Focus, I was absolutely over the moon to have my project, why is there an astronaut in a field of flowers/ included in their extraordinarily generous exhibition. Forgive my effusive use of superlatives throughout this blog, but I cannot over-express how fantastic the whole experience has been. And I cannot speak highly enough about the support I received throughout the process. Curator and Format Co-ordinator Niamh Treacy was so encouraging and a wonderful collaborator who totally got my work, which is always good! Peter Bonnell, Jodi Kwok and the incredible technical team at Quad were all friendly, professional, kind and immensely reassuring.
Putting the work up, seeing it in a space instead of on a website, revisiting it almost six months after finishing my degree, have all been incredibly useful. It reminded me of the artistic voice I was beginning to find towards the end of my time with the Open College of Arts in 2021, which feels a little like it has been knocked off kilter after the disorientating process of starting an MA in a new institution. Developing the project further, and seeing it through Niamh’s eyes, has allowed me to re-visit some nebulous threads, and reinforce concepts and questions, along with reinforcing the urgency I felt while working on it initially. These things are so precious!
Do go and see the show if you are in the area (or travel there if not!) – there are six other projects by Armaghan Fatemi, Ash//Ella, Benjamin Hall, Takudzwa Chandiwana, You Hah Kim and Yuhong Wang, all of which have so much to offer. Each of us will be doing live Instragram talks over the next month, so tune in if you can. There is also a screen wall of short-listed artists, many of whom I am connected to on social media, whose work is rich and exciting.
If I have been a bit too gushing with my enthusiasm, it’s because I feel lucky beyond belief! I’ve had my fair share of calamitous mishaps and dead ends in life, so it feels especially good to have this little moment in the sun. And with a work which, I am aware, has prompted a few puzzled reactions throughout its development.
Oh, and the project won the Format Festival Award too. Thank you!!!
Images 1-6, and 12 courtesy of Emily Jones including work by:
6. Armaghan Fatemi, 12. Sarah-Jane Field
Images 7-11 (c)SJField including work by:
7. Benjamin Hall, 8. You Hah Kim, 9. Takudzwa Chandiwana, 10. Yuhong Wang, 11. Ash//Ella.