RIP Gill Clarke

I am deeply saddened to hear that the dance world has lost one of its greatest souls, a great artist and one of its most interesting thinkers about what it is to move in a body.

Independent Dance, of which Gill was Director has issued the following message today:

Gill Clarke died on November 15 2011 as she lived, calmly and with great poise.

ID has lost a wonderful director and inspiring artist. However, we have been working together to ensure our vision of ID continues to grow.

We have already been receiving some beautiful messages and this has given us the idea to create a place where we can hold them, and to consider appropriate ways to share them.

So, if you would like to send thoughts, memories, or images of Gill, please email them to: gillclarke@independentdance.co.uk

Here she is, doing what she does best, may those who knew her and her work grow the seeds that she planted:

Mind in Motion by Gill Clarke from HZT Berlin on Vimeo.

Alexis investigates, article five: A conversation with Siobhan Davies about dance thinking

Recently choreographer Siobhan Davies has seemingly turned curator, commissioning four new collaborations between dancers and visual artists, the results of which are being shown in an exhibition titled Siobhan Davies Commissions, running from the 4 –13 November at Bargehouse, London (www.siobhandavies.com/dance/dance-works/sdc.html).

This will be the third major show in visual arts territory from Siobhan Davies Dance following The Collection at Victoria Miro Gallery and IKON Gallery Birmingham in 2009, and ROTOR at Siobhan Davies Studios and South London Gallery in 2010 (touring in 2011 to Whitworth Gallery in Manchester and Dovecot Studios in Edinburgh). Of the four commissioned dance artists, Henry Montes, Gill Clarke, and Sarah Warsop are partnered respectively with video and performance artist Marcus Coates, Turner Prize-nominated Lucy Skaer, and craft artist Tracey Rowledge. The fourth, Deborah Saxon, is working with Henry Montes and Bruce Sharp, who works in video, sound and drawing.

As both visual artist and dance maker, I was interested to know why cross art form dialogue has become such a key part of Siobhan’s artistic output. We met for an hour one crisp October morning in Siobhan’s glass fronted office in South London. I talked with Siobhan about how curating had become an extension of her own choreographic trajectory, why collaboration is important to her and how all of this relates to her personal campaign to promote dance thinking as a generator for ideas in other art forms. Talking with at times her eyes shut, hands floating back and forth, Siobhan gently uncovered the words to give me an insight that I share with you here.

So what does happen when a choreographer is situated in the role of curator? Read the full article here: www.danceuk.org/news/article/alexis-investigates-article-five-conversation-siobhan-davies-about-dance-thinking

This is the fifth in a series of articles that I have written about art and dance having a dialogue. Read the rest here: www.danceuk.org/news/article/artist-alexis-zelda-stevens-writes-series-articles-dance-uk-about-art-and-dance/

Invited to write about Siobhan Davies' new commissions

On Tuesday I went down to see Siobhan to talk to her about her recent commissions where she becomes more curator than choreographer. Her team have invited me to write abou the work and I am looking forward to talking to some of the dance artists involved next week.

Of the four commissioned dance artists, Henry Montes, Gill Clarke, and Sarah Warsop are partnered respectively with video and performance artist Marcus Coates, Turner Prize-nominated Lucy Skaer, and craft artist Tracey Rowledge. The fourth, Deborah Saxon, is working with Henry Montes and Bruce Sharp, who works in video, sound and drawing.

Siobhan Davies Commissions continues Davies’ approach of creating work to be seen at close range, and based on a dialogue between art forms. All of the pieces, including performance works, are on show for five hours daily, and visitors are free to arrive and leave as they please.

Siobhan Davies Commissions will be open from 4–13 November 2001 at Bargehouse, London

www.siobhandavies.com/dance/dance-works/sdc.html

They say your brain shows you a memory rather that what your eyes really see

As soon as my pencil touches the paper things come spilling out, my voice wants to speak.

But to say something new, feels like I have to stop my eyes from seeing what they always see and look further.

It feels like I am pulling it out of the dark, trying to see round what I know which is obscuring everything.

I now have a .com

I have pulled all of my work since 2005 together here, take a look:

www.alexiszeldastevens.com

The pile of drawings is growing

Things are starting to come together with the new body of work.

New images uploaded today:

https://picasaweb.google.com/Alexiszeldastevens/Drawings?authkey=Gv1sRgCJjbkN-M3Jyhcw#

New series of drawings in the making

I have been in the studio every Friday since the beginning of March, making a new series of drawings.

They explore the movement patterns, forms and shapes of crowds converging and dispersing.

I have decided to give all of my blog followers a sneak preview here:

https://picasaweb.google.com/Alexiszeldastevens/Drawings?authkey=Gv1sRgCJjbkN-M3Jyhcw#

Do forgive the picture quality, work in progress : )