bruise

So here we go again, traveling at magnificent speed across the universe. It's mid-June of 2011 and there I was thinking it was only April. I'm writing this in the air in a tiny little seat, flying to NYC after a very hectic few months. We opened Hope and Glory in Beijing, then 'Laughing with a Mouthful of Blood' a couple of weeks after and the Prodip show, Tribe of Many Colours'. Beijing, Hope and Glory @ G-Dot Gallery Hong Kong Museum of Medical ScienceThe two painting shows of my work and then prodips were successful in many ways. We pulled a great crowd at the openings and have seen a lot of traffic at the funny little medical museum hidden away amongst the skyscrapers around soho. Both shows can be considered installations. My work, oil paintings of the human body, fits in conceptually with the building that has a hundred year medical science history. A building that served as a pathology lab, where bodies would have been rigorously studied, now filled with art that is all about the body. Much of my painting is layered using palate knives and, not surprisingly, I think of doctors using scalpel knives to open and examine bodies in the same space where my work carves and dissects flesh in a very different way.

Prodip's work, shown in the smaller annex space, connects beautifully with the space and it's history too, as they show a very different vision that involves science and art. Depictions of aliens and UFOs. One in particular shows a mutilated cow, the victim of an alien investigation.  That is the thread that joins it all, art and science.It's been a thoroughly enjoyable experience for us all involved, there are around 10 of us involved in the project. The show had to be built, the museum doesn't normally have a clean white space inside so we built one temporarily. The show also had to be promoted, opening parties organized, people given tours, talks and lectures, posters stuck around town and on and on.A huge amount of work went into building what may seem a tiny little exhibition. But that is HK unfortunately, it's difficult to make art here but the audience seems to understand that and people are very supportive and spread the word and drop by multiple times.All of us have been hanging out at the space whether we need to or not because it's just the nicest place to hang out and we sit on the steps outside in the garden drinking beers and listening to the cicadas.

Before I got on the plane this morning I did a talk with a group of people connected to, or on the committee that manages, the museum. Most of them are retired older ladies and they are enthusiastic and ask many questions and we have a good chat. I worried that there might some awkwardness as the works show nudity and hint at violence and that the title of the show might seem horrific in someway. But then I realized much of the group were retired from medicine, so I was talking with pathologists, oncologists and haemotologists.  Little old ladies who would have spent years living amongst blood and guts, births and deaths. Probably one of the most unshakable audiences I've ever spoken too.

I've done a few talks recently, they are always a bit nerve racking but it seems a worthwhile contribution, to share information with the community. I don't preach, I just kinda tell my story.

The work sold very well. Prodips sold out instantly. His first ever exhibition, the work was affordable and high quality. PD has been involved in graphic design, music and illustration for over 20 years so he's no amature.  It was all very encouraging, both HK and Beijing shows. Especially being the first 2 projects managed by 'Future Industries', the arts organization that now manages me, Prodip and others. Future Industries is like a gallery without a permanent space and there are a number of huge projects coming up that should really keep things interesting. The FI vision is to produce large and small exhibitions, by local and international artists, in interesting environments both here and abroad.

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There's been some stuff in the papers about Hope and Glory and the government.Hope and glory was a massive risk but succeeded in so many ways. Over 50000 people came to see the show even though it was stuck all the way out in Taikoo. It got an enormous amount of press here and abroad. It was given huge support of 'in kind' sponsorship. Not cash (that was supplied by myself from sales of paintings). Swire giving us the space for free (the normal rent would be nearly 5 million HK dollars) and high profile sponsors like Louis Vuitton, Diesel, Absolut Vodka and Shanghai Tang contributing much. Many HK artists and individuals contributed much time and effort to the project giving it a wonderful community spirit. Over 400 people worked on the project.