Field | Art Projects

03 | 05 | 2017

Janet Cardiff’s 40 Part Motet at Tate Modern

‘Once every decade or so a work of contemporary art captures the imagination of the public, curators, and journalists alike, achieving that elusive trinity of critical acclaim, popular appeal and institutional approval.’  Thus wrote Cristina Ruiz in the Art Newspaper about 40 Part Motet by the Canadian artist Janet Cardiff (edited by her artistic collaborator and partner George Bures Miller).  The sound installation, which was originally commissioned by Field Art Projects in 1999, is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa and we’re delighted to say, goes on display this week in the Tanks at Tate Modern in London.

09 | 03 | 2017

Edith and Hans, a written response

“in an age when so many artworks are conceived to be photographed, when unconscious concessions are made for maximum online popularity, and when the circulation of art is so frequently a function of its representation in digital photographs and on social media, what does it mean for a work to privilege people’s presence, to ask for our time and our touch?”

With the advent of spring and better weather to tempt us outside, we invite Ellen Mara De Wachter to visit Sarah Staton’s commission, a belvedere set in the grounds of the University of Bristol’s residential halls.

Ellen invites us to experience Edith and Hans with her, and considers an artwork which “offers endless possibilities for the theatre of life” against the background of a year of dramatic political change in Europe and the United States and “rewards us for the time spent in its company”.

Ellen is a writer and curator based in London.  She is a regular contributor to Frieze magazine and her writing has appeared in numerous publications. Her book, Co-Art: Artists on Creative Collaboration will be launched by Phaidon in April 2017.

Download Ellen Mara De Wachter’s commissioned response to Edith and Hans here.

03 | 01 | 2017

Janet Cardiff’s Forty Part Motet

One of the first works produced by Field Art Projects, Janet Cardiff’s Forty Part Motet is revisited in an article by Terence Riley published this month on affidavit.  Riley describes this seminal work by Cardiff, the almost visceral response it elicits, and the way the work changes according to its setting - “it made me feel as if I had never really heard music before, or at least never understood it as a spatial as well as auditory phenomenon.”  You can read more here.

05 | 12 | 2016

Murdered with Straight Lines by Garth England

If you’re looking for an unusual but delightful gift for Christmas then look no further! 

Our book of drawings by Bristol-based milkman Garth England, Murdered with Straight Lines has been described variously as “an extraordinary social document”, “a beautiful book that charts the changing city through the eyes of a post-war everyman” and “absolutely gorgeous, I can’t get my nose out of it”. 

Reviewed in The Guardian, Hyperallergic, the Bristol Post and BBC Radio Bristol, you can order a copy for only £8 from Redcliffe Press.  All profits go to charities of Garth’s choice.

02 | 11 | 2016

Sarah Staton Talk, Wednesday 23 November

Sarah Staton will be giving a talk about her work as part of the UWE/Art in the City talk series at Arnolfini, Bristol at 6.30pm.

Sarah Staton creates spaces and objects that seek to enable revelry and reverie.  Her work combines a sculptor’s sensibility with design, landscape and architecture.  Staton’s practice draws inspiration from graphic and furniture designers, architects and cultural critics with whom she collaborates.  Staton’s recent work has explored interaction between audience and environment where her artworks have become habitable or capable of supporting life.  Staton is interested in the tactile qualities of our built environment, an idea she returns to repeatedly in her work.

In the lecture she will talk about her work including Edith and Hans, the new public realm commission produced by Field Art Projects for the University of Bristol, a 21st century folly and social sculpture for the University’s halls of residence at Stoke Bishop.  She exhibits internationally and her work is held in public collections all over the world.

Tickets are £6/£4 and free to students and staff at the University of Bristol and UWE.  To book follow the link.