a-n Artist Bursaries 2019

Happy to say Vicki Bennett is one of the recipients of the a-n Artist Bursaries 2019 – more about this later in the year.

162 artists based throughout the UK have been awarded a share of £200,000 to fund their professional development in the latest round of a-n Artist Bursaries.

a-n Artist members were invited to apply for bursaries up to £1,500 to fund self-generated activities such as research, training, travel, community projects, learning new skills or building networks.

An ambitious, one-of-a-kind annual programme that supports artists at a crucial time in their practice, the a-n bursary programme received a record 853 applications this year.

The bursaries aim to be ‘light touch’, requiring artists to complete a simple application detailing what the money will be used for and why it is crucial.

Julie Lomax, a-n CEO and bursaries selection panel member, said: “The standard this year was really high, making the selection very tough. We are thrilled to be able to support so many artists with such a diverse range of projects. Personalised development opportunities like this are vital.”

The bursaries will fund a range of new artist-initiated projects spanning themes such as virtual reality and artificial intelligence, climate change, zines, cultural history and identity. Artists also applied to attend conferences or residencies around the world, develop their socially engaged practice, and grow their networks with peers and mentors.

The selection panel also included a-n Artists Council member Binita Walia, independent curator Lucy Day and successful 2018 bursary recipient Owen Parry.

Parry said: “It was a privilege to be part of the selection process and see all the different projects artists want to fund. As an artist with experience of funding from this bursary programme, I could directly contribute to the process of selecting individuals that were most likely to benefit.”

The Mirror in Czech Republic

The Mirror will screen at AFO, which is held in Olomouc, Czech Republic. The goal of the film festival is to popularise science through documentary films, lectures and workshops of filmmakers, scientists and academics. 54th edition of the festival is scheduled on 23-28, April 2019. The Mirror will screen in the Archive & Film section.

The Mirror screening in Kentucky

Saturday 9 February 2019
Full event length: 6:00 PM – 11:59 PM EST | The Mirror screens approximately 8pm (check with them if you’re planning on going)
Columbia Theatre, 824 South 4th Street, Louisville, KY 40203, United States

Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wxox-voix-de-ville-tickets-54715323004

As part of a larger program of performances, a theatrical screening (ie we won’t be there!) of THE MIRROR by People Like Us will take place at the grand Columbia Theatre at 824 S. Fourth Street in downtown Louisville for the Voix de Ville commemorating the 3rd Anniversary of WXOX 97.1 FM / ARTxFM! Enjoy food and libations from local vendors, and bid on selections from your favourite shows in the XOX themed Silent Auction. http://www.artxfm.com/

Some Bizzare Radio Special

Many thanks to Leon for having us on Reel Rebels Radio on The Avant-Garde for Middlebrows: a Some Bizzare label special. You can listen here:

Here’s the track list (selected from a much longer list):
Soft Cell – Entertain Me (Richard Skinner session)
Cabaret Voltaire – Sensoria
People Like Us – Feel It Steal It
Agnes Bernelle – Mother The Wardrobe Is Full Of Infantrymen
Dave Ball – Sincerity
Renaldo and the Loaf – Critical/Dance
Coli – Who By Fire
Marc and the Mambas – Untitled
Psychic TV – Stolen Kisses
The The – Perfect
Scraping Foetus Off The Wheel – Descent Into The Inferno
Swans – A Screw
Val Denham and Farmacia – As I Walked Out One Evening
Burmoe Brothers – Under The Blanket Of Love
Marc Almond and La Magia with Nico – Your Kisses Burn
The The – We Can’t Stop What’s Coming

People Like Us and The Mirror on BBC Radio Hear and Now

On Saturday 19 January 2019 22:15 (UK) on BBC RADIO 3 Vicki will be guesting on Hear and Now, presented by Robert Worby.  She will be talking about her work, then the show will air a recording of the full 35 minute People Like Us concert The Mirror, which was performed at London’s Cafe Oto in Summer 2018. Broadcast then archived for a few weeks: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00022k6

https://peoplelikeus.org/Hear-and-Now-interview-PLU-19Jan2019.mp3

People Like Us on BBC Late Junction

On 8 January 2019 Vicki Bennett joins Anne Hilde Neset on BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction. Vicki will play one track from The Mirror and a couple of favourite picks of other people, namely Jacques Tati and David Lynch. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0001xwp
Live link then show archive (3 weeks) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0001xwp
Listen: https://peoplelikeus.org/PLU-LateJunction-Anne-Hilde-Neset-with-Vicki-Bennett-8Jan2019.mp3

Vicki and Anne Hilde Neset on Late Junction playing a track from The Mirror, then two favourite sounds – from Tati’s PlayTime and David Lynch’s Twin Peaks SE3E08 (radio station scene)

New Film for Improvising Musicians and Artists

We have made a new film for improvising musicians and artists titled Objects In The Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear. This is part of our project The Mirror, which initially was and is an audiovisual performance by People Like Us, and the umbrella project also includes 3 new artist commissions and this film.

This is not the first film we have made of this type. Previous to this was Notations (which included a national tour in the UK (followed by further dates internationally) with a fantastic roster of improvisers, supported by Sound and Music), as well as some collaborations where we have made the film then made sections available to other artists and musicians to respond (Gesture Piece and CCCitations).

Much like the other movies, you can enquire about performing with this movie by way of our Contact Page. Our first performance will be in Newcastle, UK in June 2019, as part of a collaboration with Newcastle University Department of Music.

Performances:
14 June 2019 – Culture Lab, Newcastle
18 July 2019 – 7th Syros International Film Festival – Overexposure

The Mirror Commissions

Our project The Mirror consists of an a/v performance (and sometimes stand alone movie), an album release, a film for improvisers, and 3 new artist commissions where they to respond to The Mirror with a new piece of work. All three artist responses by Dina Kelberman, Porest (Mark Gergis) and Hearty White are now available, so we’re putting them all together online here:

Reflects by Dina Kelberman (December 2018)
Media link:  https://dinakelberman.com/reflects

Description:  When I thought about the word “reflections” this is what my brain showed me.  Something about reflects, reflex, reflection symmetry, shapes, walls, and now that i think about it it’s probably a lot to do with sitting in a tiny room full of corners all day every day.  Also laptop symmetry.  These might all just be portraits of my laptop.

Bio:  Dina Kelberman is an interdisciplinary artist recently transplanted from Baltimore, MD to Los Angeles CA.  Kelberman has created original web-based pieces for the New Museum and The Marina Abramovic Institute and has participated in numerous design and photography biennials.  Her work has been written about in The New York Times, Art21, NPR, Known and Strange Things (Cole, 2016) and most recently The Focal Press Companion to the Constructed Image in Contemporary Photography (Routledge, 2018) and Olia Liliana’s “An Infinite Seance 3”.  In 2018 she was invited to speak at the UbuWeb conference in Athens and the Post-Photography Prototyping Biennial in London.  She is currently ranked 5th in the world for Most Lines in Tetris for the Nintendo Entertainment System.