A 2 week residency in September 2018 with SERDE in Latvia, exploring the Cold War legacy through the environment, people and objects. Film making will be the medium of choice.
Like many other artists I am interested in many things. One of the things that I am interested in is the material culture and legacy of The Cold War (1946-89). This involves thinking about the way that people were forced to live during these times of division and separation. It means looking at the landscape for traces that can sometimes be almost invisible such as deep bunkers and observation posts. Architecture and buildings are also an important area for studying, looking at the creation of opposing architectural styles, while also finding striking similarities.
To inform this topic and investigate deeper, I will be participating in a short residency in Latvia with the SERDE interdisciplinary art group (http://www.serde.lv). This will take place in September 2018 and this blog will document my thoughts leading up to the residency and also capture and document the activities undertaken during the residency. To conclude the blog, I will also share the output after the residency, when I have returned back home.
SERDE are interested in artists who are willing to work with local audience and hosts. This part is of great interest as I would like to expand my practice to work with local communities. So the plan for Serde will be to explore the environment, places and spaces with the aim of making a film. As stated, I am interested in the architecture that was created during the Soviet era and the method in which it functioned as a Utopian vision. I previously visited Armenia and did a micro residency with ACOSS (2013). The country was fascinating, especially the architecture and I produced a film that used footage shot in Yerevan and also shots of a book titled ‘The Soviet Architecture of Armenia.
My art work encompasses sculpture, film and drawing. The aim will be to produce a short artists film based on my experience of exploring the area around Aizpute (where SERDE is based) and in particular a visit to Skrunda (an abandoned Utopian housing project). My itinerary will also look at including a visit to the seaside and ‘The Forbidden Zone’ (where people were not allowed to enter during the Cold War). I am interested in talking to local people, doing interviews about life during Soviet times and how life compares now. This would be used in the film to provide a narrative. I also plan to visit some flea markets and book shops to pick up some material that can be used in the film. The film will also feature the local area around the residency, as I will make field trips to explore and record the environment. Post production and editing would take place back home after the residency.