Who's Jack | Art Chat: with James Elphick
November 24, 2012
An Interview with Guerrilla Zoo’s James Elphick, curator of ‘Modern Panic III’- a unique exhibition featuring the work of over 50 surreal, controversial and provocative international visual artists and live art practitioners.
How did Modern Panic 1 first come about?
Modern Panic exhibition series evolved from a show we did entitled ‘Panic’ held in 2009 as part of a ‘Season of Jodorowsky‘ showcasing the work of legendary film maker and artist Alejandro Jodorowsky. Panic featured the founding fathers of the Panic Movement alongside the new wave of modern provocative artists.
What motivated you to curate successive Modern Panic exhibitions?
Modern Panic series was a natural progression and eerily coincided with the London riots. Both seemingly exhibiting the social unrest of the times. The work we show is relevant to the moment, its put together by international artists, new comers and established many of whom create work specifically for the exhibition.
What has attracted you to work which references or harks back to the Parisian‘Mouvement panique’ of the early 1960s?
The Panic Movement concentrated on chaotic happenings containing performance art and surreal imagery, designed to be shocking, as a response to surrealism becoming petite bourgeoisie and to release destructive energies in search of peace and beauty. The modern artists’ work we feature echo a similar ethos in their own work, and are also a little unusual compared to the ‘regular’ art world.
Fernando Arrabal, Alejandro Jodorowsky and Roland Topor’s co-founded Movement panique was influenced, as you know, by Antoine Artaud’s ‘Theatre of Cruelty’, to what extent do you see the role of Modern Panic (III) as being to subject your audience to a truth or truths that they may not wish to see?
The work we exhibit is designed to provoke a reaction in the viewer. Who is to say what is good and bad in art only the audience themselves. It’s all about your personal tastes and perhaps the limitations of your perceptions. Go with an open mind and see which works resonant with you.
How have visitors to Modern Panic I and II reacted primarily?
I will let the quotes from our guest book speak for themselves :
‘Moving’ , ‘Loved it! Like taking a strong hit of acid’, ‘Speechless’, ‘Intensely personal, beautifully crafted work’, ‘This exhibition will stay with me!’, ‘Better than the Tate!’, ‘Powerful depiction of the times’, ‘Really inspiring’, ‘Challenging & enjoyable’, ‘brilliant, made me happy.’
Performance art seems to be very much more visible/mainstream now that it has been in recent years – think Tate tanks, Turbine Hall performance piece, Turner Prize nominated performance artists etc- and Modern Panic too includes the work of performance artists as well as painters and sculptors, why do you think this is?
Performance art has always been part of the arts, it’s now being accepted in from the fringes again from its exodus away such is the cycle of creativity.
We will be hosting a special series of riotous live art performances as part of Modern Panic III from the likes of Nicola Canavan, Jon John, Lydia Darling, Hellen Burroughs, Nina Davies and many others - www.guerrillazoo.com/panic-sermons
There is something quite deliberately primal, quite barbaric and quite depraved/degenerate about some of the work previously included in Modern Panic, is such work designed purely to shock do you think?
The exhibition isn’t based on work which is for pure shock effect, it’s about work that can engage the viewer and have them thinking about long after they have left. Some of the work I find particularly powerful to others the same piece might have a completely different effect. Modern Panic features a vast cross section of work in various mediums, some beautiful and surreal others a little more visceral or ‘ground breaking’.
What’s next for Guerrilla Zoo?
We will be holding a festival next May as part of our annual Goblin King’s Masquerade Ball. We have more events & exhibitions planned for the 2013 so for any interested folk please join our mailing list or facebook page for announcements.
Modern Panic III, 24th November- 2nd December, Apiary Studios, London E2 9EG
Source : http://www.whosjack.org/art-chat-with-james-elphick/
An Interview with Guerrilla Zoo’s James Elphick, curator of ‘Modern Panic III’- a unique exhibition featuring the work of over 50 surreal, controversial and provocative international visual artists and live art practitioners.
How did Modern Panic 1 first come about?
Modern Panic exhibition series evolved from a show we did entitled ‘Panic’ held in 2009 as part of a ‘Season of Jodorowsky‘ showcasing the work of legendary film maker and artist Alejandro Jodorowsky. Panic featured the founding fathers of the Panic Movement alongside the new wave of modern provocative artists.
What motivated you to curate successive Modern Panic exhibitions?
Modern Panic series was a natural progression and eerily coincided with the London riots. Both seemingly exhibiting the social unrest of the times. The work we show is relevant to the moment, its put together by international artists, new comers and established many of whom create work specifically for the exhibition.
What has attracted you to work which references or harks back to the Parisian‘Mouvement panique’ of the early 1960s?
The Panic Movement concentrated on chaotic happenings containing performance art and surreal imagery, designed to be shocking, as a response to surrealism becoming petite bourgeoisie and to release destructive energies in search of peace and beauty. The modern artists’ work we feature echo a similar ethos in their own work, and are also a little unusual compared to the ‘regular’ art world.
Fernando Arrabal, Alejandro Jodorowsky and Roland Topor’s co-founded Movement panique was influenced, as you know, by Antoine Artaud’s ‘Theatre of Cruelty’, to what extent do you see the role of Modern Panic (III) as being to subject your audience to a truth or truths that they may not wish to see?
The work we exhibit is designed to provoke a reaction in the viewer. Who is to say what is good and bad in art only the audience themselves. It’s all about your personal tastes and perhaps the limitations of your perceptions. Go with an open mind and see which works resonant with you.
How have visitors to Modern Panic I and II reacted primarily?
I will let the quotes from our guest book speak for themselves :
‘Moving’ , ‘Loved it! Like taking a strong hit of acid’, ‘Speechless’, ‘Intensely personal, beautifully crafted work’, ‘This exhibition will stay with me!’, ‘Better than the Tate!’, ‘Powerful depiction of the times’, ‘Really inspiring’, ‘Challenging & enjoyable’, ‘brilliant, made me happy.’
Performance art seems to be very much more visible/mainstream now that it has been in recent years – think Tate tanks, Turbine Hall performance piece, Turner Prize nominated performance artists etc- and Modern Panic too includes the work of performance artists as well as painters and sculptors, why do you think this is?
Performance art has always been part of the arts, it’s now being accepted in from the fringes again from its exodus away such is the cycle of creativity.
We will be hosting a special series of riotous live art performances as part of Modern Panic III from the likes of Nicola Canavan, Jon John, Lydia Darling, Hellen Burroughs, Nina Davies and many others - www.guerrillazoo.com/panic-sermons
There is something quite deliberately primal, quite barbaric and quite depraved/degenerate about some of the work previously included in Modern Panic, is such work designed purely to shock do you think?
The exhibition isn’t based on work which is for pure shock effect, it’s about work that can engage the viewer and have them thinking about long after they have left. Some of the work I find particularly powerful to others the same piece might have a completely different effect. Modern Panic features a vast cross section of work in various mediums, some beautiful and surreal others a little more visceral or ‘ground breaking’.
What’s next for Guerrilla Zoo?
We will be holding a festival next May as part of our annual Goblin King’s Masquerade Ball. We have more events & exhibitions planned for the 2013 so for any interested folk please join our mailing list or facebook page for announcements.
Modern Panic III, 24th November- 2nd December, Apiary Studios, London E2 9EG
Source : http://www.whosjack.org/art-chat-with-james-elphick/
