Next we change the Earth
As NAE defines itself, historical and cultural explorations of identity lie
at the heart of our first exhibition. The relationship between the artist,
the site and the city forms a backdrop to the relationship between our past, present and future.
An anagram of The New Art Exchange, Next we change the Earth spotlights artists who have spent time in Nottingham on their professional trajectories. Acknowledging the progress of the past and contemplating the future, the exhibition reflects on issues faced by ‘Black’ artists in the UK and invites exchange around notions of Culture and Identity, Time and Space and Home.
Artist Biographies
Said Adrus
Said Adrus focuses on the Muslim Burial Ground in Woking, Surrey. Using a variety of media the work highlights issues about War, Empire, and Islamic Architecture in the South East of England and notions Contemporary landscape in the Home Counties. Said Adrus has been exhibiting internationally from the 1980’s to present.
Elshaday Berhane
Elshaday Berhane will explore childhood dreams through playful sculptures devised from discarded toys found in the streets of Forest Fields in Nottingham. Berhane will relate this to her memories and journey from Ethiopia – from her hometown to her homeland. Elshaday Berhane is a co-founder of Thingland Studios in Nottingham.
Harjeet Kaur
Harjeet Kaur believes she has many homes, including time spent in Nottingham where she did a lot of her ‘growing up’ and partaking in new journeys and experiences. The photographs will evoke common memories and share our sense of home. Harjeet Kaur was awarded an Arts Council England Curatorial Fellowship at The British Council.
Samson Kambalu
Samson Kambalu will challenge meaning and context with eight hardback bound volumes containing 5000 computer-generated anagrams of ‘The New Art Exchange.’ A drawing of selected anagrams will drip down from the Gallery wall. Samson Kambalu’s novel– The Jive Talke – has recently been published. He was awarded the Arts Council of England Decibel award in 2006
Michael Forbes
Michael Forbes’ work Coloured Black challenges notions of cultural past and the lines between African and European history. Hundreds of porcelain figurines are painted in rich saturated monochrome colour as Forbes creates a Black presence that can be honoured. Michael Forbes exhibits internationally and co-curated Next we change the Earth.
Hetain Patel
Hetain Patel presents a live dance performance and a video installation – IT’S GROWING ON ME. This work incorporates different aspects of his practice presenting culturally specific rhythm, ritual body decoration and the transformation of visual identity through hair growth. He was awarded the Arts Council of England East Midlands Decibel award in 2004/5
Keith Piper
Keith Piper will produce video studies of the landscape of Forest Fields Recreation Ground and invite juxtaposition between traditions of 18/19th Century landscape design and the shadows cast by the contemporary mythologisation of Nottingham as a site of danger.. Keith Piper was awarded the Arts Council of England Decibel award in 2005. He is one of the UK’s most celebrated ‘Black’ artists
Gary Stewart
Gary Stewart will collaborate with artists Trevor Mathison and Obinna Nwosu from the collective Dubmorphology to create an interactive sonic installation interrogating the traces of evidence, meaning and conclusions formed as a consequence of teenage deaths at the hands of their peers. Trevor Mathison
founded the celebrated ‘Black Audio Film Collective’, whilst Gary Stewart is presently Head of Multimedia at Iniva, London.
Nazir Tambouli
Nazir Tambouli explores notions of home, but a home of tension where nature and the imagination
threatens the security of the saying ‘Home sweet Home’. Tambouli will exhibit two paintings recently produced with the support from Arts Council of England. Nazir Tambouli’s recent exhibitions in London have received critical acclaim.
Andrew Wright
Andrew Wright re-explores his relationship to Africa. After a recent visit to Gambia he discovered a sense of what links him, as a black man having grown up in the UK. He will re-visit this personal history in his painting. Andrew Wright won the prestigious Nottingham Castle Open in 2006.
Saturday 6th September — Sunday 26th October 2008