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Clare Charnley

Leeds
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Concepts/ideas/themes For some time I have investigating the problematics of intercultural dialogue, with particular reference to nationalism and the politics of language. Employing live art for its directness and its high risk of embarrassment, this inquiry initially took the form of a six-year collaborative project in a range of countries (Speech 2002-20077). Speech acknowledges, and then utilises, different cultural experiences, urgencies and intentions. It is not based on consensus. One of my collaborators described the work as opening up situations of mutual vulnerability. It has lead to the publication of So communication… translating each other’s words, co edited with Katrin Kivimaa, in which issues of language are considered by an international selection of writers, artists and academics pondering themes drawn form the performances. Word Exchange involves swapping stories with the public about language(s) and pleasure, and about subjective attraction to specific words (Fresh Festival Hastings UK; Humbermouth Literature Festival, UK). In the process I have built up an evolving collection of brief recordings of individuals’ linguistic loves (in Kurdish, Somali, Cornish, Swedish, Portuguese, Taiwanese, English, Cantonese, Mandarin, French, German, Chinese, Japanese, Welsh, Russian, Icelandic, Arabic, Estonian etc). These recordings are made and held on simple yellow record/playback units (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsedlf1w_4Y ) which were activated in a performance at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil. In Misunderstandings, another ongoing project, other’s firsthand verbal accounts of misunderstandings (cultural, linguistic, behavioural, technological etc.) are pitted against each other. As anecdotes they become a means of verbalising understandings and interpretations, as well as a process of laughing at the flaws, pitfalls and general unreliability of communication. Some of these stories have been told many times and polished in the process so that they better represent the teller’s worldview. Sometimes they reveal assumptions, prejudices or fears. At other times they point towards romantic imaginings about the other. There is much comedy in misunderstanding, and the teller often recounts in a humorous way, laughing as they do so. The laughter can be directed towards themselves who may be revealing an act of ignorance, naivety or stupidity. In these cases the telling of the story is often an act of generosity on the part of the narrator. Immigrants’ experiences are often rich in misunderstandings, both as misunderstander and misunderstandee. However, although misunderstandings are can be generated by difference it is also important to recognise that the phenomena of misunderstanding is universal, and gather material from as many sectors and in as many languages as possible. Exhibited together in a database, these parallel stories will build a grand and complex narrative about the process of forging meaning in incomprehensible situations – an activity that can evidence great creativity and ingenuity Career Research Fellow in art Media, University of Lincoln Senior Lecturer in Fine Art, Leeds Metropolitan University
 

Recent selected exhibitions, screenings, performances and writing

* work in collaboration with Patricia Azevedo

2024       Terminalia Festival of Psychogeography, with Deirdre Macleod.

Huddersfield Experimental Short Film Festival, with Geoff Clout.

The 3rd Festival of the Smallest, 222lodge, Dordrecht, Netherlands, with Deirdre Macleod.

 

2023       SWITCH 2023/ PLAY, Nenagh, Ireland *

DRESS, Art in Odd Places, 14th Street, New York, with Farah Naz Moon

Work within Michelle Williams Gamaker’s exhibition, ‘Our mountains are painted on glass’ South London Gallery and Dundee Contemporary Arts, UK

WOFF23 Film Festival, Depot, Lewis, UK. Audience choice award.

Democracy, Overture Galleries, Madison USA*

Ever Given Neil Kuthi performance with Farah Naz Moon, The Tetley, Leeds UK and Studio Mahbub, Dhaka, Bangladesh

 

2022          Graphics. LCB Depot, Leicester

On Performance, Short Circuit Films, Brighton

CuratorSpace Artists Bursary

                Temple Newsam collection, Leeds

Engaging the Globe*  ed. Peter Sramek, pub. OCAD University, Canada

 

2021       CHANGE! *8prichal, Nikolaev, Ukraine with Lulia Togara

                Historic Houses, UK. First prize winner

TYPO Mail Art Muzeum Pismiennictwa i Drukarstwa, Grebocin, Poland

Birkenhead International Film Festival, Birkenhead*

Interplay Leeds, commission with performance poet Lulia Togara

Nieuwstraat Festival, Dordrecht, The Netherlands

Winter Sculpture Park, Gallery No.32, London

 

2020       Assembly House, Leeds. Commission with performance poet Lulia Togara

False Memory, Rugby Art Gallery and Museum*

                Royal Overseas League. Collaboration with poet Joey Chin

                Festival of the smallest, 222Lodge, Dordrecht, Netherlands

Film Free and Easy, Primary, Nottingham

 

2019       BF Artists Film Festival, The Lab F, London

Film Free and Easy, Primary, Nottingham*

Summer Lodge Residency, Nottingham Trent University

Tunnel Vision 2, public spaces, Nottingham

Artists Moving Image Screening Weekend, Pavilion, Leeds.  Curated by Herb Shellenberger*

        Public Intimacy, B#Side Gallery, Treviso, Italy. 

Screening Performance, Performing Screens CUNY New York, USA. With Lena Heubusch

InDialogue (conference presentation) Nottingham Contemporary, UK*

 

2018       Film Free and Easy, Primary, Nottingham *

Artists Moving Image Festival, Tramway, Glasgow, UK

Space21 Independent Program. Erbil, Sulaimani and Dohuk, Kurdistan-Iraq. Performance

Birth Rites Collection exhibition/screening, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester and Kings College, London, UK

Encountering difference. Performance/demonstration with Lena Heubusch, Chelsea College of Arts, London

Inner Nature III Against the Tide. *  Screenings;

Madraza Palace Contemporary Cultural Centre, University of Granada, Spain

Video Space, Hospital Real, Granada, Spain

Video Art and Ecology. Temple University, Philadelphia, USA

Out of line Contracorriente, Centro de Arte Mandarina Bords, Palmera, Spain 

s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands

Faculty of Social and Human Sciences, University of Zaragoza, Spain

Art.Earth, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon, UK

Library Interventions, Leeds Arts University.  In collaboration with Geoff Clout. Video    and performance commission with Michelle Williams Gamaker

From Dust till Dust, B#Side Gallery, Treviso, Italy. 

Wrexham Open, Ty Pawb, Wrexham, Wales. *  

In-sonora10, Muestra de Arte Sonor, various venues, Madrid, Spain. *  

                FF2WP The Finnish Museum of Photography, Helsinki*

 

2017      Difference goes speed dating. Curated by Ope Lori. Chelsea College of Arts, London

Framing The Crisis, System Gallery, Newcastle, UK. A Vault Collective project. *  
 CineAutopsia / Bogotá Experimental Film Festival, Colombia. *

Inner nature III.  Against the tide. Institut Valencià d’Art Modern, Spain. *

Inner nature III.  Las Tablas de Damiel, Sala de Audiovisuals, Cuidad Real, Spain. *  

Artists Boarderpanic Compendium. Visual essay of performance script. Edited by Curious.

Fast Forward 2 Dillon and Lee Gallery, New York*

Kaapelitehdas, Tallberginkatu 1 G, 00180 Helsinki*

FF2WP The Finnish Museum of Photography, Helsinki

Make8elieve. Photo essay in publication. *

Stuff of Epic, B#Side Gallery, Treviso, Italy.

STEP travel award from European Cultural Foundation


2016       Paravideo, Paratissima, Torino Esposizioni Turin, Italy. *

Bankley Open, Bankley Studios, Manchester, UK (prizewinner). *

Making Tracks, Whirlygig Cinema, London Dance Film Festival, Rose Theatre, Kingston on Thames, UK. *   

Doubles Series + Mintier. blip blip blip at East Street Arts, Leeds, UK with Lucy Clout
Chroma, Safehouse 1, London, UK. *

Ten Ends, Live Art Bistro, Leeds, UK.

No Quiet Place, The Tetley Leeds, UK.

Sunscreen, New Art Exchange Nottingham, UK.

Sheffield Fringe: Object Documentary. Bloc Projects, Sheffield, UK. *

Cinema apensar da imagem. Ed Gabriel Mendotti. Book chapter. *

 

2015       Spring Lamb, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, UK

Re-name, British Heart Foundation Shop, Doncaster, UK

Sunscreen, Venice Biennale Bilateral Event, Italy

Sunscreen One Thoresby Street, Nottingham, UK

Domestic II, Word of Warning, Manchester, UK

Sunscreen Instagram takeover commission

 

2014       Seen Created, The Terry O’Toole Theatre, Lincoln,  UK

Video screenings. Beacon Art Project, UK

Decision / Decyzja. Leeds Metropolitan University,  UK

Chinese Pole 2. Action for inTRANSIT, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, London,  UK

 

2013       torinoPERFORMANCEART, Turin, Italy. *

ACAdovetail, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. *

Archetype Drift, Johalla Projects Gallery, Chicago, USA. *  

Face-to-Face. project Leeds Market, UK, with makeup artist Abby Graves

Copy at the Table.  20-21 Visual Arts Centre, Scunthorpe, UK

In-Teatro festival, Polverigi., Italy

 

2012       Globalization-Connections-Time, Kunsthalle Hannover, Germany.

PNEM Sound Art Festival, Netherlands. *

Hazard Live Art, Manchester, UK.

Morley Literature Festival, UK.

Hoopla! Sugarhouse Studios, London, UK.

 

2011       Magaio Voicescapes, Binaural, Nodar, Portugal
                Platforma Rochelle School, Club Row Gallery, London, UK

Coastal Currents, Hastings and St Leonards, UK
 

2010       We Trust Strangers, Umbrella Gallery Leeds, UK

Giessen Video Festival, Germany

Bed-in at The Bluecoat, Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool, UK

The 23rd Festival Les Instants Vidéo, Marseilles, France

Overlap, The Drawing Shed, PSL Leeds, UK

Hazard Live Art Festival, Manchester, UK

Preparing the Ground, ACAdovetail Gallery, Newcastle on Tyne, UK

Crunchtime2010, York,  UK

              Exchange Mechanism, Belfast Exposed, Belfast, UK

 

2009       Post War, Sulaymaniyah, Kiurdustan/Iraq

Town and Country Events, PSL Leeds, UK

Here we are, Brumadinho, Brazil

Here we are, Allenheads, Northumberland, UK

 

2008       The Northern Art Prize Exhibition, Leeds Art Gallery (finalist)

The Language Lesson (100 teachers and 1 pupil) UFMG, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

                Humbermouth Literature Festival.  UK. Special Commission.

                New Appointments, Leeds Metropolitan University Gallery, UK

 

2007       Performance with Adalet Garminary, Arbil University, Kurdistan/Iraq

Hobusepea Gallerii. Tallinn Estonia. with Katrin Kivimaa

Horticulture. Leeds Metropolitan Gallery, UK

 ‘Sobre Macao’ Performance with Wen Yau, DoDao Festival, Macao.

Coastal Currents, Hastings, UK

Le French Mai Festival.’Our Voices’ curated by Loic Serot, Hong Kong

                The Bengal Gallery, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Performance with Ronni Ahmmed

 

2006       The Living Art Museum, Reykjavik, Iceland. Performance with Bryndis Raqgnarsdóttir

Casino Luxembourg Forum d'Art Contemporain. Performance with Tanja Frank

 

2005       Transborder Language, 2nd Dashanzui International art Festival, Beijing China. Performance with Shu Yang

Performance Art Platform, Tel Aviv, Israel. Performance with Anat Pick

                National Eisteddfod, Caernarfon, UK . Performance with Mererid Hopwood

Perspective Antarctique, Galerie ÉOF, Paris, France. Performance with Françoise Vincent

 

 

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