In December 2008 I was one of a group of artists from The Royal Standard in Liverpool who participated in the final exhibition at Rhys and Hannah Present, a space in Bristol run by artists Rhys Coren and Hannah James. The Royal Standard transformed one floor of the gallery in to a social space, extending some of the day-to-day experiences of working among a studio group to the visiting public, and establishing a forum for informal discussion and debate centered on the collective preparation and consumption of meals. Blackpool Museum of Contemporary Art and Eastside Projects (Birmingham) occupied the other spaces in the gallery.
ArtArtArt: Globalisation, Art and Markets
In October 2008 I contributed an essay to the Global Art Market issue of the electronic journal ArtArtArt. The text explores the relationship between art, globalisation and independent trade by asking a mobile phone text service that professes to ‘know just about everything about anything’ a series of questions ranging from why are artists poor? to how much money do we spend in Tesco?.
Download the magazine here.
Mobile Sports Foundation
In October 2008 I was one of a group of artists involved in Townly and Bradby's Mobile Sports Foundation, a project which seeks the temporary use and navigation of urban public spaces through impromptu tennis rallies. This incarnation of MSF formed part of Navigator, a group exhibition at The Royal Standard.
The Royal Standard
| I am now one of twenty five artists based at The Royal Standard, Liverpool's leading artist-run organisation. It has recently expanded in to a former print works on the northern periphery of the city centre and opened the doors of its three gallery spaces for the first time 19 September 2008 to coincide with the Liverpool Biennial. |  |
The Conversational library
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In August 2008 I (unexpectedly) became a member of The Conversational Library, which was recently inaugurated by artists Townly and Bradby. Through The Conversational Library literature is freely shared between its members and day-to-day discussion is extended whereby books are exchanged rather than just described or referred to in conversations in the pub. |
Clarion Epic - Fellowship is Life / Lack of fellowship is Death
Vintage cycling jerseys made by Charlotte Walters for Ruth Beale and Karen Breneman.
In July 2008 I welcomed Ruth Beale and Karen Breneman to Liverpool, cycling the homestraight of their journey by bike from London to The Institute for the Art and Practice of Dissent at Home in Everton, Liverpool. This was followed by a meal and discussion led by Ruth and Karen on themes and issues raised by their journey through the country, including cultural tourism, cycling, the Clarion CC, industry, community and domestic relationships.
Berlin
Free Art School, Fluxus reenactment, 2008 Anti-konflikt police at Fuck Yuppies demo
In June 2008 I visited Berlin to meet wooloo, the organisers of the New Life Berlin Festival and to stay with Sheffield-based artist duo No Fixed Abode who were coordinating Caban Unnos, the reclamation of an area of Berlin’s main square, Alexanderplatz.
During my stay I participated in a fluxus re-enactment class at the Free Art School which is usually run from Islington Mill in Manchester, and Fuck Yuppies a protest movement for autonomous free spaces in response to Berlin’s heavy regeneration.
The Artist As Social Entrepreneur
A number of artists involved in The Artist As Social Entrepreneur, photograph by Jane Pitt, 2008
In April 2008 I was one of fifteen UK-based artists representing a number of artist-led initiatives, galleries and collectives, selected for participation in a social research trip to Lille, Nord-Pas-de-Calais region (Northern France). The project was a NAN-Networking Artists’ Networks event organised by Fabrica in collaboration with L’H du Siège, Valencienne. The UK-based artists that it brought together were:
Liz Whitehead, Matthew Miller, Caitlin Heffernan, Lisa Finch, Laurence Hill
(Brighton)
Fabrica
Emilia Telese, Guyan Porter
AN (The Artists Information Company)
Anna Francis (Stoke-on-Trent)
Airspace
Patricia Wilson Smith (Canterbury)
Limbo Arts
Alex Michon (London)
Transition Gallery
Ellie Harrison (Nottingham)
Ellie Harrison.com
Lauren Healey (Darlington)
MAP artists' network
Paul Stanley (Manchester)
[deletia]
Emily Speed (Liverpool)
Wolstenholme
Projects
Jane Pitt (Kent)
PANEK (Performing Arts
Network East Kent)
Johanna Berger (Brighton)
BLANK
Elaine Speight (Preston)
Plaited Fog
Amelia Crouch (Leeds)
PSL (Project
Space Leeds)
ESA (East Street Arts)
Susan Diab (Brighton)
ARC
Bernadette Moloney (London)
Braziers International Artists' Workshop
Jackie Berridge (Nottingham)
Harrington Mill studios
Related links:
View slideshow of images taken by Ellie Harrison
Visit Anna Francis's blog
