This week we are gearing up for our exciting new exhibition The People You’re Not which opens this Saturday in Gallery 1.
During last summer we put on the exhibition Unrealised Potential: a collaborative group exhibition thought up by artist/curator Mike Chavez-Dawson. The show aimed to explore the creative potential of artists’ unrealised projects, blurring the lines between artist, curator, visitor and producer. A diverse range of artists’ ideas covered the walls of Gallery 1 and for £50 you could have snapped one up to realise yourself. And three groups of people did just that…..cue The People You’re Not, a satirical trip through the private and public faces of fame.
Harry Hill’s proposal To recreate George Cruikshank’s The Worship of Bacchus using known alcoholics has been realised by Bren O’Callaghan. Think Victorian satire meets Heat Magazine with 7 illustrators putting their contemporary spin on scenes from George Cruikshank’s famous 1860 painting exposing the evils and horrors of alcohol. You’ll spot ‘performers’ like Kerry Katona, Liza Minnelli and George Best at the centre stage of six large-scale Victorian-style toy theatres, setting the scene for tales of drunken celebrity clichés and the pitfalls of the demon drink. A full list of the plays and celebrity cast members can be found here.
Feel Free to Stroke, proposed by Norman Clayture has been realised as an absurd, affectionate installation, that pays homage to the adoring fans and rock and roll life of ‘Norman Clayture’, a guitar hero in wooden underpants….yes thats right wooden underpants! Viewers are invited to step into Norman’s office and rummage through letters from his adoring fans and get on stage and experience 5 minutes of his fame. This particular idea has been realised by members of LiveWire, our Cornerhouse programme aimed at young people aged 14-19.
And finally Edward Barton’s proposal was simply Please Improve My Work. Our adult group of workshop participants chose to recreate a significant, startling work of Barton’s entitled I’ve Got No Chicken But Five Wooden Chairs. In their new ‘improved’ version, I’ve Got a Chicken But No Wooden Chairs, an audio-visual installation merges vintage footage with new, bringing a darkly absurd element to the original song.
So there’s plenty for everyone!
The People You’re Not previews this Friday 28th Jan at 18:00 in Gallery 1 so if you’re around do pop in. As well as exploring the 3 different works you’ll be treated to a live performance from both Manchester treasure Edward Barton and wooden pants wearing rock god Norman Clayture. An evening not one to be missed!
The People You’re Not runs from Sat 29th Jan – Sun 27th Feb.
Also check out the two events that accompany this exhibition – An Evening with Edward Barton and our Gallery Discussion with the creators and workshop facilitators.