Nimble Fish » Creative Process

The Space in the Middle

Samantha — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 06:25:14 +0000

As respite from the Re:bourne ‘machine’, I have been doing some research into Landscape and Environment Art; think Christo, Dennis Oppenheim and Andy Goldsmith. I stumbled across this;

(Environmental Art)…is a “spatialisation of cultural politics”, a radical rethinking of the intersection between social relations, space and the community. This rethinking can lead to a kind of IN-BETWEEN or THIRD SPACE, a lived space of radical openness and unlimited scope, where all histories and geographies, all times and places, are immanently presented and represented. Edward Soja

My thoughts exactly!

I hope on some level Re:bourne is able to achieve some of these things. At its best it will be a ‘creative disruption’ or ‘interruption’ that enables the community to inhabit a transgressive space between bricks and mortar and day to day life; it will a critique of what is already there , an invitation to change literally and emotionally. At worst, it will simply enrich shoppers experience as they collect their frozen peas from Iceland.

All hands to the cleaning sponges

Greg Klerkx — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 05:58:48 +0000

No, Sam isn’t rehearsing for an upcoming Nimble Fish melodrama; it’s merely her exaggerated exhaustion from bleach-cleaning walls in one of our re:bourne event spaces (the shadows are because there’s no power inside the space so we have to jury-rig power and lighting from elsewhere).

If many of these blog entries seem unduly concerned with the nuts and bolts of process and prep–as opposed to declaiming about the artistic product–it’s probably because re:bourne lives or dies on seemingly small things like whether or not a shop that hasn’t had an occupant in at least 5 years can be made decent enough for art to occur there. The time and energy this can take, and the importance of spending both, is only learned through experience.

When it comes to working like this–that is, the renovation/ preparation of non-traditional art and performance spaces in high- traffic areas (not abandoned warehouses and suchlike)–we must surely be industry leaders by now, if such an industry exists. And disinfecting shops is all into the bargain.

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

Rain, rain, go away…

Greg Klerkx — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 09:09:15 +0000

…at least ’til the end of Saturday (because you see, oh great rain- making mysteries, we re:bourne folks would be rather unhappy were you to come on, say, Friday and decide to stick around. Nothing personal: its not you, its us. Hope you understand, glad to talk it through, we’re still friends, right? Right?)

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

Word Walk

Greg Klerkx — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 07:57:20 +0000

Writers Gary Studley and Vicky Wilson will offer Word Walk for re:bourne. Here are Vicky’s impressions about the process thus far:

“Our involvement in re:bourne has enabled us to develop our interest in community engagement and in finding ways of encouraging people to delight in words. We have just begun to work with found poetry as a medium, and the idea of creating a found poem for Sittingbourne enables us to use this technique on a more ambitious level. We didn’t know Sittingbourne before this project but are excited about finding out what local residents think of their town to add to our own impressions.”

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

A future as rich as the past

Greg Klerkx — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 14:38:30 +0000

The re:bourne team rounded out a very busy week of pre-event prep with a lively whirl through Sittingbourne history courtesy of Peter Morgan, who surely should be classed as a regional, if not national, treasure for his encyclopaedic knowledge of Sittingbourne and Swale. The former Sittingbourne Mayor and Kent Councillor treated us to an eloquent recitation of the area’s remarkable history at the Heritage Museum, itself a fascinating repository of artifacts and history, some of which date back to the area’s Bronze Age residents. Among the many wonders of the Museum is a recreation of a WWII-era home (that’s Peter on the right).

What was perhaps most inspiring about hearing Peter and visiting the Museum was to know that the building housing the Museum itself was, not so long ago, derelict to the point of near-demolition. Crumbling and mould-wracked, its floors strewn with spent syringes and needles, the former shop (dating back to at least the 18th century) was a hollow shell of itself. Through the efforts of Peter and others, though, it was revived and now plays host to school groups, community events and–when you’re as lucky as we were–the occasional private tour.

Hearing from Peter about the area’s rich past was a great way to look forward into the coming week and give us more motivation to make re:bourne worthy of the history that has come before. We hope you’ll come along and see what the future holds…

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

The River

Greg Klerkx — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 11:24:05 +0000

Across both re:bourne event days, Swale-based visual artist Dean Tweedy will create a temporary public artwork–with the help of re:bourne audiences–that will pay homage to Sittingbourne’s maritime history. His reflections on the project thus far:

“My life as an artist can sometimes be a solitary affair, spending many hours painting away with only my thoughts and Radio 2 for company. Re:bourne gives me an opportunity to not only work with some of the many great local artists that I have met since moving to this area, but also to meet the public when we take art into our neighbourhood and celebrate the good in this town.
“Sittingbourne is rich in history but recently, partly due to the recession, it seems that it is slowly eroding away as shops close down and people go to out-of-town supermarkets or shop online. Many of the locals feel Sittingbourne is starting to be overlooked and forgotten. This will only happen if we let it, and I hope that by making use of empty spaces for events like re:bourne we can raise awareness of the town’s heritage and also the developmental possibilities of this area.”

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

A Garden of England

Greg Klerkx — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 09:20:34 +0000

Teynham-based artist Sioux Peto of Polka Dot Arts, whose work ‘A Garden of England’ features in re:bourne on 13-14 August, offers this perspective on her re:bourne experience thus far:

“Working within a festival concept has opened up more opportunities for local artists than we would normally be given and has also allowed us to work amongst other artists in the comfort of our hometown. We are using this experience to evaluate what the general public thinks of our work, and about the arts in general, something we would not have otherwise been able to achieve.”

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

Time-Travelling Sparky

Greg Klerkx — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 09:09:08 +0000

Sparky, a lively and very animated character who has been making friends throughout Kent this year, is looking forward to making a special visit to Sittingbourne during re:bourne on 13-14 August. Here, one of Sparky’s friends, artist Ciaran McKay, talks about his re:bourne experience to date:

“Since being part of this project, I have visited Sittingbourne a few times and have noticed a number of shops either boarded up or closing down. However, I noticed that two of the shops that were still doing good business were local butchers and bakers, two trades that i would imagine have been part of the town as it has grown over the centuries. On one of my visits I overheard two people commenting on the downfall of the high street, highlighted by disappointment in their voices. I thought to myself that I hope they are around during re:bourne to witness something special on the high street…maybe a new beginning for the renovation of this historic town.”

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

Shadow Catching

Greg Klerkx — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:08:46 +0000

Wendy Daws’ ‘Shadow Catching’ will be part of re:bourne on 13-14 August. Her thoughts on the project thus far:

“For me, Sittingbourne has been somewhere you drive by on the way to somewhere else. I’ve not had a reason to visit the High Street, but it has a fascinating history and I’m very happy to be immersing myself in it.”

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous

Tide & Time

Greg Klerkx — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:04:59 +0000

Today we’re posting the first of several bits of reflection from some of our re:bourne artists about the process of creating their re:bourne work; its impact on them as artists, and their hopes for its effect on Sittingbourne, Swale and beyond. We’ll post some random shots we’ve taken of the event site over the past few months of working there to accompany each bit of reflection…a small, slightly random bit of associative virtual art in advance of our big, non-virtual event on 13-14 August.

The following is from Swale-based artist Julie Bradshaw, whose interactive work ‘Tide & Time’ will be on our programme:

“Taking part in re:bourne has excited and enthused me. It has acted as a catalyst in making me more determined to raise the profile of Sittingbourne and Swale as an area to host art events that are both challenging and enjoyable, contemporary and traditional, and which would have people from many different locations wanting to visit and participate.”

Posted via email from rebourne2010’s posterous