The Hidden Pin Up #24 - Debut at The Whitworth Art Gallery

Sister

You've been on my mind
Sister, we're two of a kind
So sister
I'm keepin' my eyes on you
I betcha think
I don't know nothin'
But singin' the blues
Oh sister, have I got news for you
I'm somethin'
I hope you think
That you're somethin' too
 

On 22nd September The Hidden Pin Up made its debut at The Whitworth Art Galley. This was a day myself and fellow collaborator Darren Pritchard of the House of Ghetto (HOG) had been aiming towards for a long time and it was so worth the wait!

Working with HOG dancer Lenai Russell and singer Justina Aina, our two superb performers, we'd chosen a staircase in the gallery that not only worked as a great theatrical stage but also led the way up to the Bodies Of Colour wallpaper exhibition, which tackles the racial stereotypes and representations found in design through history, and tied in so perfectly with the themes of The Hidden Pin Up.

Arriving early on the day so that we could set up I felt excited to see people already turning up for the first of the day's hourly performances.

As the first notes of Miss Celie's Blues flooded the huge open space, everyone's eyes were led to the sultry movements of Lenai on the upper floor, hidden behind the hemp fans and wearing the hemp showgirl costume I'd created. As the song took hold she told it's story of female solidarity against oppression effortlessly, making her way down the stairs while dancing with the fans, which was no mean feat. I was so impressed with how graceful and focused she was and also noticed, after seeing the rehearsals, how the presence of the audience elevated her performance further.

Once the song had ended, the second half of the performance kicked in with a house beat and almost immediately Justina's powerful vocals layered over Lenai's vogue driven assent back up the stairs. The effect was exactly what we'd hoped for with the sensuous movements that invited the eye contrasting so vividly with Justina's provocative singing/ spoken word performance, sometimes humourous sometimes accusative, using the words of stories I'd collected from women of colour and stitched onto the fans. Justina was just brilliant and took the whole piece into a new dynamic.

The piece ended with both performers reaching the upper floor and disappearing from view as the music faded out. Loads of people turned up for each performance and the applause was really gratifying as was the huge amount of feedback.

 Many people said they wanted to see more, or would be happy to watch an extended piece and I personally wasn't expecting how moved many individuals were. Various people said the piece touched them deeply and they found the work powerful. This really fuels me and makes me feel that all the research and setting up was worth it!

Accompanying the performance piece I also ran two workshops that tied in with the Bodies Of Colour exhibition and the overall theme of racial stereotypes and misrepresentation that set the day. The workshops were a chance for participants to create their own political wallpaper designs inspired by the exhibition and The Hidden Pin Up. The results were impressive and there was lots of lively chat about the topic.

In all, the day was really successful and I'm so happy that the work spoke for itself and made such an impact. One woman told me she had traveled from Glasgow to see it! It was lovely to speak to people about the work, let them get close to the fans and to share ideas and thoughts between performances.

Thanks to everyone who came on the day, and for those who couldn't make it, we had the performance filmed professionally and will be sharing it in time. Also myself and Darren are hoping to take this work further, evolve it and show it again in the future, so definitely watch this space! The Hidden Pin Up will return...

The Hidden Pin Up #23 - THIS SATURDAY!

 

This Saturday 22nd September sees the debut performance of Hidden Pin Up at The Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester! Myself and fellow collaborators the House of Ghetto are so excited to get this work up and running! The day will consist of performances every hour on the hour 11am - 3pm and these will be interspersed with two workshops that tie in with the gallery's wallpaper exhibition Bodies of Colour. 

The Hidden Pin Up looks at the fetishization of the black female body by investigating the hidden history of the black pin up girl and the legacy of racial stereotypes still found in modern day life. Taking inspiration from the traditional burlesque fan dance with a House of Ghetto twist, this site specific dance and spoken word vignette is political with some added phunk.

The Repeating Patterns workshops are a chance to create a collage wallpaper design and put your own spin on ideas of racial and cultural stereotypes using design tropes found within the Bodies of Colour exhibition.

Times run as follows:

Saturday 22 September, 11am - 3.10pm

All events are free, drop in, no need to book

Performance times:

11am – 11.10am
12pm – 12.10pm
1pm – 1.10pm
2pm – 2.10pm
3pm – 3.10pm

Workshop times:

11.15am – 12pm
1.15pm – 2pm

Hope you can make it!

Keep up to date with the project's progress on this blog and by following me on Instagram @gemma_parker_artist

The Hidden Pin Up #22 - Bodies of Colour

There's been a lot going on between this blog post and the last as The Hidden Pin Up now has a date and venue for it's debut performance! Put Saturday 22nd September in your diaries!

We have been in talks with the Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester and are currently working on the order of a day which will include hourly performances with wrap around activities which we are still formulating. So far we are thinking about debates, possible workshops, leaving a legacy and asking other artists to respond to the work.

The Whitworth is housing a new exhibition called Bodies of Colour which ties in perfectly with the themes and ideas which The Hidden Pin Up addresses and will be a great focal point to perform the piece in. With the tag line 'Breaking with stereotypes in the wallpaper collection', the exhibition deals with difficult questions and complex histories surrounding cultural identities and systemic racism as described in the words and images found in the decorative wallpapers on display. 

Some of the pieces date back to the 1800's such as a wallpaper picturing scenes from Uncle Tom's Cabin produced in Manchester in support of the anti slavery movement, Uncle Tom being a stereotypical shorthand for subservience.

Even the most innocent subject carried deeper meaning such as the 1933 Mickey Mouse wallpaper, which was manufactured around the time Mickey Mouse was 'blacking up' in a cartoon version of Uncle Tom. It interested me to note the visual formula for Mickey and his early pals copied the tropes used by black and white minstrels with their white gloves and highlighted mouths.

Other recent pieces produced by artists tackle the exhibition's theme with a jarring blend of both decorative and disturbing such as Robert Gober's 1989 work, Hanging Man/ Sleeping Man. The repeating pattern tells us much of racism in America while the sleeping white man is blissful in his (chosen) ignorance to it.

Wandering around the exhibition I was really impressed with how well it put across the fact that we live with these messages as repetitive backdrops to our lives in much the same way the micro aggressions aimed at women of colour form the work behind The Hidden Pin Up, 

The decorative aspect of the wallpaper somehow manages to make the negative ideology much more acceptable, it almost hides it! Similarly many mirco aggressions are framed in a complementary or repetative way that allow them to go unnoticed by some.

I am so excited to work closely with the exhibition and allow The Hidden Pin Up to add extra context and discussion to the project. Much more to follow as we set our plans in motion . I'll be posting about them as things take shape!

Busy busy busy...

A small section of Panoramia by Leo Fitzmaurice

It's been a while since I last posted as I've spent the last three weeks helping to install the new Leo Fitzmaurice show at The Lowry.

This show is part of the Transformations series based around artists responses to The Lowry's Promenade Gallery. It's a huge space and this show was pretty hardcore to produce. Imagine creating countless reproductions of film cartridge packaging on a giant scale (the walls are about 6 metres high, the gallery as long as a street!), complete with muli-coloured spectrum! The end result though is completely impressive, a show that lives up the the brief of transforming a space into a new landscape.

Leo Fitzmaurice artwork concentrates on advertising, signage, packaging and print reworking these themes to reveal other, often suprising, aspects from materials we often take for granted. The exhibition, Panoramia runs from now until the 5th September, with the private view taking place on the 13th May.

I will resume normal posts this week as I recover from muscle ache.

Other news:

The Chantilly Belles have recently been commissioned by The Whitworth Art Gallery to produce a new routine for the launch of the new adult learning programme!

Myself and Rene la Rouge are so excited to be involved in this event. We are creating a brand new routine as a response to the Whitworth collection, in this case a fab wallpaper featuring vintage style pin ups! The launch night will be on the 11th June and I will fill you in on things as we put the routine together and rear up for a very busy month!

What's on in Manchester right now!...

Uptown, Leonard Pytlak 1939

Now that I have just about finished rushing around like a maniac putting shows up and doing art fairs I have some time to reflect on the world around me... and what better way than to take in some culture! So here are some of the current local exhibitions I have seen or plan to see in the near future!

The American Scene, prints from Hopper to Pollock
The Whitworth Art Gallery Manchester
19th September - 13th December 09

This show focuses on American artists creating prints from the 1930's. Each image explores the American Scene, the urban environment and cityscapes. The big draw here for me is the evocative pull of the pre war era; being able to experience something of what America was like for the artists during what we now consider a vintage period. I also love the work of Edward Hopper, most famous for his paintings such as Night Hawks painted in 1942. I particularly like this image for its timeless feel, and the intense loneliness it exudes;

The Half, Photographs of actors by Simon Annand
The Lowry Salford Quays
19th September 09 - 3rd January 2010

I have a personal interest in this show as I helped to put it up! The work is a series of over 100 photos taken by the artist in the West End dressing rooms of some of the best known and well loved actors of the past 20 years. 'The Half' describes the 30 minutes before a stage show begins and Simon Annands pictures capture the actors as they transform from their everyday persona to the character they are about to portray. I really like the photos of Alex Kingston and Daniel Craig, and also the nation's favourite, Stephen Fry;

Image taken from www.simonannand.com

Angels of Anarchy, Women Artists and Surrealism
Manchester Art Gallery
26th September 09 - 10th January 2010

I'm not a big surrealist fan in truth; I like my art to invite the viewer in not confuse them, however, that isn't to say I don't appreciate surrealist art and understand it's massive importance in the scheme of things. This exhibition aims to 'explore the crucial role that women artists played in the surrealist art movement' and includes work by Freida Khalo amongst others. It is also divided down into different themes including landscapes, fantasy and self portaiture.

Claude Cahun, Self Portrait 1927

Other shows worth noting include:

Fantasies, Follies and Disasters: the Prints of Francisco de Goya
Manchester Art Gallery
Until 31 Jan 2010

All at Sea by Gemma Parker
Taurus Canal Street Manchester
Until 31st Oct (Catch it while you can!)
See my last post for details.

Bloomberg New Contemporaries 2009
Cornerhouse
Until 25th Oct
I'm hoping to see this one next week...