Thoughts for April: Showing our Workings
archipelago arts collective co-directors Seán Ryan and Beth Knight in rehearsal for Mother of the Revolution.
Photography by Emily Goldie.
For our first ever monthly look-ahead, archipelago arts collective co-directors Beth and Seán talk about why we’re wanting to show our workings.
We’ve been reflecting a lot recently on the relationship between artistic process and product. This has stemmed from celebrating five years of archipelago, but also (possibly more pertinently) lots of conversations we’ve been having in and out of a creative sector context about the perceived importance of what we visibly produce as artists and how neglected the way we make art, and its wider impact beyond the product, can be and how it is articulated and felt.
We’ve always believed that our process, our way of making, is as important as what we make and are really excited and interested to boldly celebrate and platform the artistic process.
Our Practice: i.e The experimental, unedited and collaborative knottiness that combine to produce, sometimes unexpected, creative outcomes.
We’re at the precipice of a world where a piece of creative work with all the hallmarks of quality art can be produced (with the burgeoning commercial application of AI) without any discernable process (more on this in the coming months). If the outcome of our work is all that is considered. This, alongside a myriad of pressures on our sector (more on these in the coming months), raises significant questions about the nature of the artistic process; why do we do what we do; how do we actually engage; and how do we make an impact? We think this makes it all the more important to be generous with the knowledge and experience we accumulate throughout our creative process.
On the first Friday of every month we’ll be delving into our process and sharing insight into the creative impact it has on us as artists. In the spirit of celebrating the process, this will be experimental in form, and we don’t currently know what form this will take month-to-month. It could be a blog post; a video essay; a case study; a round table; a provocation to a wider conversation; and we’ll definitely be having some guest contributors. We’ll also be rounding up with some of our recs for the month ahead!
This is, of course, only our artistic process. It’s a constant learning curve, we haven’t and won’t always get it right. What we hope is that starting this conversation here will lead people to share their thoughts, resources and experiences with the aim of opening up more visible conversations and opportunities for knowledge exchange and learning around what, why and how we work as artists. In turn, we hope this can validate some of the shared experiences of artist communities as well as more closely inviting our audiences in to our work.
In other archipelago arts collective news:
Singing Sessions
We’re currently running some drop-in singing sessions in collaboration with our friends at New Wortley Community Centre until 14th May.
And until next month (none of these are affiliated in any way, just things we love) -
Beth recommends:
A read: I want every book to make me feel like Anne Enright’s The Wren, The Wren.
A listen: I’ll be devouring Bon Iver’s SABLE, fABLE once it’s fully released on 11th April. I have AWARDS SEASON on constant repeat already.
A watch: There’s no better telling of the power of art than Sing Sing. A true story told by its own community where all artists were paid in parity. Just absolute perfection.
An event: Run, away from an oncoming light craft airplane, to see Wise Children’s North By Northwest. We saw it at York Theatre Royal and it’s a wonderfully madcap caper of deception, joy and humanity.
Seán recommends:
A read: It’s a few years old now, but I recently read Faith, Hope and Carnage by Nick Cave and Seán O’Hagan. I found it a fascinating, form-bending meditation on all sorts - from the grief process to the creative process - and felt very seen by some of the artistic challenges that songwriters face.
A listen: I’ve given Night Life a few spins in the last week or so and really enjoyed it. Music which integrates live musicianship with electronic elements sometimes leaves me a bit cold, and making it soulful can be a tough ask, but I think The Horrors have managed it here.
A watch: Armando Iannucci and Sean Foley’s Dr Strangelove is doing the cinematic rounds with National Theatre Live. I draw the line at giving a standing ovation at the cinema (I don’t even do this in a theatre!) but as a fun, updated satire starring Steve Coogan in four roles, I definitely recommend.
An event: I’m looking forward to An evening with Little Sparrow at Cafe No9 on Thursday 10th April. Its such a unique venue to see folk artists in and the gig will almost definitely be accompanied by a baby-weekend bottle picked up at Starmore Boss.