Art is everywhere this week…

There’s tonnes of the stuff – in the galleries, on the streets, in the garden, at the bus stop… Here’s a quick run-down of what’s going on (be sure to schedule in a Saturday morning lie-in – Friday is going to be a long night!):

At The Rea Garden, Graham Dunning’s ‘Visitor Centre: an excavation of sound’ is now open daily from 11 – 4pm until 3rd October. ‘As well as the evidence of site excavations and sound works in the main shed, there is also some of the objects of interest found whilst digging on display in the small green ‘shed gallery’.’

The Last Tape opens at VIVID tomorrow (Wednesday 22nd Sept) with a launch event from 6pm.  The work is British artist Harzoon Mirza’s ‘film and sculptural assemblage’ which ‘sews together Krapp’s Last Tape a one-act play written by Samuel Beckett and Mirza’s exploration of post-punk pioneers Joy Division’.  It’s at VIVID until 16th October.

Local Myths at Eastside Projects

On Friday 24th Sept it looks like your best bet is to start the art crawl at Eastside Projects, which is opening its doors at 6pm for the launch of ‘Local Myths’ by Jennifer Tee in the main gallery and Elizabeth McAlpine’s ‘Square Describing a Circle’ in the second gallery.

In Local Myths ‘Tee’s sculptural forms lie, stand and hang…’ – two suspended mobile works counterbalance a grounded 3.5 metre tall marble column which has the text LOCAL MYTHS carved out of the surface. The column is set to be a long-term work at the gallery that will later ‘be located in a permanent site in the Eastside area’ – would be interesting to know where’s in mind for this.

‘Square Describing a Circle’ is a sculpture that will hold two projectors facing each other which use ‘the two essential elements of film: light and time’ to maintain a square projection of captured sunlight that moves ‘a degree at a time during the course of the day’.

Hiker Meat at Grand Union

VIVID will be open again on Friday evening for you to pop into on your way to Ikon Eastside, which is open from 6pm for the launch of Danish artist AVPD’s new exhibition ‘Hitchcock Hallway’, which like the film Director uses ‘spatial effects to create psychological intensity’.  When you try to get in, you’ll find the gallery entrance is replaced by a door. ‘What lies beyond is for the visitor to discover.’

If you manage to re-emerge it’s just a quick skip across the road to Grand Union for the grindhouse film fever of Jamie Shovlin’s ‘Hiker Meat’ – ‘One Trip You’ll Never Forget’ with the fans and musicians of fictional German noise band Lustfaust, who will be performing a live film score. The exhibition contains graphic material that is not suitable for children, which sounds promising.

Friction Arts' Inside Out Festival

Last but not least it’s time to venture across Digbeth High Street to Friction Arts’ The Edge on Cheapside for the launch party of Inside Out. Brought to you FOR ABSOLUTELY FREE in association with Sonic Asylum, there will be ‘Drawdhino type cleverness from Antonio Roberts and his Fizzpop cohorts, Live acoustic loveliness from Youssouf Karembe (from the Dogon tribe in Mali) and the Wilderness of Manitoba (from the harmony tribe in Canadia) as well as installations and artworks from our A45 project (connecting Coventry artists with Brum)’.

This big bash will kick-off a jam-packed weekend that includes:

• Art trails around Digbeth that take in transformed bus stops, ‘hidden’ artworks and contributions by the Rea Garden and Lombard Method.
• A Saturday night ‘Happy Artist’ disco and social club with Dr David Ethics, Brendan Higgins and DJ Miserable Bastard.
• A Sunday morning Artists’ Brunch with Stoke Newington Airport, Quarantine and Brian Duffy.
• An exhibition of works from the festival at The Edge from Monday 27th Sept.

So there we have it – a pretty exciting weekend in store for Digbeth (please let me know if I’ve missed anything, it’s hard to keep track with so much going on).  Be sure to keep your cameras, mobiles and gadgets charged and handy, there will be much to record!

Tweet