At last! I've launched my new blog Audio Pigeon. I'll be bringing you regular snippets and treats from the audio world along with studio visits (chatting to artists in their natural habitats) and possibly some sound recordings and artworks too. We'll see how it goes.
Please take a look and let me know what you think. www.audiopigeon.com
I am nearing the end of a series of Sound Art Workshops with first year Fine Art students at Nottingham Trent University’s School of Art & Design.
Together, we’ve been listening, recording, circuit bending, looking at the effects of acoustics, making contact mics, learning sound editing software and creating some very promising new work.
I hope the students are having as much fun as I am! They’ve consistently delighted and surprised me and I’ll be very sad when it all comes to an end on the 14th.
To learn more about the Fine Art course at Nottingham Trent, visit their website at: http://www.ntu.ac.uk/art
You can read my responses to Hugo Verweij's Five Sound Questions on his fantastic blog www.everydaylistening.com
Possibly the best Sound Art blog around?
14:00 - 07th October 2010
'Wires & Bows' will be screening at the Abandom Normal Devices (AND) Festival of New Media and Digital Culture, on the 07th October as part of the 'AND Shorts' screening.
AND welcomes audiences to experience the best in new cinema and media art in a celebration that spills from screens and galleries into the streets and imaginations of the North West.
The AND Shorts include dramas, animations and artists using unconventional techniques.
07th October 2010 : Cornershouse, 70 Oxford Street, Manchester, M1 5NH
More information can be found at: http://www.andfestival.org.uk/
17th September & 20th November 2010
'Wires & Bows' will be showing at the inaugural (D)FEFV Experimental FIlm and Video Festival in Krk, Croatia later this year.
It will take place between the 17th September and 20th November 2010. The festival will last for two days and will perform on two locations in the old town center: in the Decumanus Gallery and on an open air location in the old town center near to the old town walls and The Frankopan Castle.
If you're a Facebook member, you can find out more at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/KUL/295571656069
Or, you can visit: http://vimeo.com/groups/dfefv
28th July 2010 - starts 19.30 (screenings from dusk)
'Wires and Bows' will be showing as part of 'The Train' on the 28th May 2010.
For one night only we will be giving the Train it's graces. The night will include performance, short films, sound pieces and much more all revolving around the theme of The Train as well as a BBQ, drinks carriage and live music.
New Dalston Roof Garden
18 Ashwin Street
London
E8 3DL
Starts 19.30
£5 entry
View a map here.
Further information can be found at: http://thetraintheplanetheautomobile.wordpress.com
29th May 2010: 12.00 - 17.00
'In My Good Ear' will be playing at the SoundFjord Gallery as part of their Sonic Jukebox on 29th May 2010.
Due to open officially on the 31st July, SoundFjord is an exciting new gallery and research unit in north London dedicated to the Sonic Arts.
The gallery was founded to readdress the current lack of exhibiting space exclusively for works of sound art and focuses on the exhibition and documentation of art works, the development of artists within their creative and research practices, and ultimately, the promotion of sound art and its related interests to a wider audience.
Further information can be found at: http://www.soundfjord.org/
07th May 2010 : screenings at 19.00 / 20.00 / 21.00
'Wires and Bows' will be showing as part of 'Voice/Under', a programme of artists videos that explore the relationship between image and sound.
The White Box Studio, Broadway, 14-18 Broad Street, Nottingham, NG1 3AL
Further information can be found at: http://www.nottinghamvisualarts.net/event/apr-10/voiceunder
Alison Ballard has joined One Million Points of Light! Launched by British artist Andrew Pepper in February 2006, it's aim is to produce a collaborative work which can be seen globally, anywhere in the world and is currently being seen in 121 countries!
Based on adapted pixel advertising software, One Million Points of Light asks participants to "switch on" a block of ‘light’ on the homepage, choose a colour to fill it, and then link this to a website of their choice. The screen will fill as more and more blocks are illuminated.
Once all the blocks of light are illuminated a three-dimensional holographic image will be made of the One Million Points Of Light Project resulting in a sculptural installation made entirely of light!
The site has already received more than a million clicks with some days registering over 7,000
For further information, visit the project’s hompage: www.onemillionpointsoflight.com
Or to learn more about Andrew Pepper and his work, please visit his website: www.apepper.com
24th - 25th October 2009
Short video 'Beijing' (in collabortaion with Filmmaker Andrew Brand) will be showing as part of Mike Blow's project 'Midnight Sun' at Phoenix Brighton.
9 filmmakers in total have been commissioned to make films of the sun which will be screened upon the outside of the Pheonix Brighton building throughout the night to keep the sun alive until it returns the next day.
Screening from dusk til dawn 'Midnight Sun' is part of 'White Night', an annual, all night, city-wide festival throughout Brighton and also forms part of Phoenix Brighton's Fortune Factory festival of experimental art and performance.
6pm - 7am
24th - 25th October 09
Phoenix Brighton
Waterloo Place
Brighton
BN2 9NB
Further information can be found at:
www.phoenixarts.org
www.whitenightnuitblanche.com/brighton www.evolutionaryart.co.uk/midnightsun.php
11th - 13th September 2009
Short animation' Wires and Bows' (in collaboration with Director Andrew Brand) will be showing at Artsfest as part of the 'Best of Flip Film Festival' programme.
This will be 'Wires and Bows' 30th screening!
Further information can be found at: http://www.artsfest.org.uk/
5th – 8th August 2009
New installation ‘Pod’ will be showing at Shunt during the first week of August 09.
Created in collaboration with Artist and Technologist Mike Blow, ‘Pod’ gives physical form and shape to low frequency sound at the cusp of human hearing.
A humming sound is emanating from inside a series of giant balloons. Perhaps they are eggs? Or, perhaps they are seeds from an undiscovered plant? Come along and decide for yourselves.
Shunt’s current home is a sprawling labyrinth of arches underneath London Bridge Station. Sadly, they are due to close their doors in September to move to a new location so if you’ve never been before, come and experience this unique venue while you still can!
You’ll find Shunt on Joiner Street, within the pedestrianied passage between the tube station and London Bridge Overground (look out for the unmarked doorway!)
Doors open: 18.00 – 23.00 Weds – Fri / 20.00 – 00.00 Sat (but once inside the bar is open until late)
Entrance: £5 Weds & Thurs / £10 Fri & Sat.
Please note: you MUST bring photo ID to enter. Over 18s only.
More information can be found at www.shunt.co.uk
26th – 30th July 2009
Short experimental animation, 'Wires and Bows', will be showing at the Tenderpixel Gallery, in the heart of London, as part of the Rushes Soho Shorts festival 09.
Renowned for it’s not-for-profit status and it’s championing of emerging talent, the Rushes Soho Shorts festival is recognised as a leading showcase for the short film genre both nationally and internationally.
Wires and Bows will be screening at the gallery daily from Sunday 26th July until Friday the 31st as part of the Tenderpix 2 showreel. For screening times and further information visit: www.sohoshorts.com / www.tenderpixel.com
Wires and Bows will also feature on a DVD containing all the Tenderpix Experimental films from this years festival available from the Tenderproduct shop. www.tenderproduct.com
During the screenings, all gallery cinemagoers are invited to vote for their favourite film to win the Tenderpix Award, so get down there and start voting!
Tenderpixel, 10 Cecil Court, London WC2N 4HE
www.tenderpixel.com
www.sohoshorts.com
2nd - 16th May 2009
Showing at the Blank Studio Gallery as part of the Brighton Fringe Festival, 'Sonic Art' is a group show, exploring the use of sound in art through recorded works, installations, new instruments and visualisations. Showcasing 11 emerging and established sound artists from the UK, Japan, France and Germany. The show features experimental and noise music, field recordings, music played by light, sound sculptures made from slinkies and touch-sensitive metal plants.
As well as performing on the opening night, Alison will be exhibiting a recording of ‘All Ears’ in the listening room, throughout the exhibition.
Blank Studio Gallery, 108 North Street, Portslade, Brighton BN41
Launched in April 2007, Blank is a studio and gallery complex run entirely by artists. Its purpose is to house and support contemporary art in all its forms.
For more information visit:
www.brightonfestivalfringe.org.uk /
www.blankstudios.org
7th March – 4th April 2009
Throughout March, 'Wires and Bows' (a short animation in collaboration with Filmmaker Andrew Brand) will be showing in 15 different cities across the UK as part of BBC Big Screens.
BBC Big Screens will be in the following places:
Bradford - (Centenary Square)
Bristol - (Millennium Square)
Cardiff - (The Hayes)
Derby - (The Market Place)
Hull - (Queen Victoria Square)
Leeds - (Millennium Square)
Liverpool - (Clayton Square)
Middlesbrough - (Centre Square)
Norwich - (Chapelfield Plain)
Plymouth - (Armada Way)
Portsmouth - (Guildhall Square)
Rotherham - (All Saints Square)
Swansea - (Castle Square)
Swindon - (Wharf Green)
WalthamForest - (Walthamstow Town Square)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bigscreens/
2nd – 27th March 2009
The Pixel Palace presents a series of sound pieces offering alternative sonic experiences to visitors of the oldest newsreel cinema in the country, the Tyneside Cinema.
Alison’s work, ‘The Eighth Wonder of the World’, is a recreation of King Kong climbing the Empire State Building. A panic-stricken crowd watch from the foot of the stairwell as Kong battles with attacking biplanes at the top.
www.thepixelpalace.org/step-sequence
2nd - 9th November 2008
A week-long residential creative & practical workshop exploring sound, moving image, art and technology. 12 artists will be taking part, forming new collaborations and creating new and exciting audiovisual works.
Cybersonica www.cybersonica.org is London’s annual celebration of music, sound, art and technology. Now in its seventh year, it’s a leading international event for anyone interested in the theory and practice of how new technologies are shaping and changing the way musicians, DJs, VJs, digital artists, audiovisualisers and creative software developers make and present their work.
http://avlab.cybersonica.org
20th June - 6th July 2008
Both 'Video' and 'Wires & Bows' will be showing at ArtSway as part of 'Multichannel', an exhibition of artists' film and video reflecting current trends in contemporary lens-based work.
www.artsway.org.uk/Multichannel
