Saturday, September 16, 2017

'No holiday' - Dorsoduro, Venice


A trip to see the 2017 edition of the Venice Biennale gave me the opportunity to take my 'No holiday' performance there to continue the journey.

After spending a few days becoming accustomed to the city, I decided to focus on crossing bridges that span canals in the city. This action relates to the geography of the city and at the same time it captures the often repeated activity as people move through the space of the city.

I chose the quiet district of Dorsoduro win which to perform, starting close to Piazzale Roma and making my way south towards the university district of the city, crossing small bridges along the way.
The sounds of boats and barges making their way around the canals was very relaxing and at one point the movements of a small boat and myself walking became perfectly synchronised as I crossed a bridge. The boats owner whistled just before making a 90 degree turn into another canal, obviously to warn other craft, but it almost seemed as though he whistled to signal the synchronisation of our movement.

Eventually I discovered a lovely church that could form a natural conclusion to the walk, the Chiesa dell'Angelo Raffaele, in which I found paintings by the renowned Venetian artist GianAntonio Guardi. The performance ended as I picked up my red suitcase and entered the church.


'No holiday' - Dorsoduro, Venice, Italy - 16th August 2017

The recording can also be viewed on my youtube.com channel here: https://youtu.be/_LRaVkdBqBA

Sunday, September 10, 2017

'No holiday' - Sewerby Cliffs, UK.

The summer break offered me the opportunity to take my 'No holiday' performance out of Hong Kong and the first location I found was the wonderful clifftop near Sewerby on the north side Bridlington in East Yorkshire, UK.

Limekiln Lane, which runs down onto the seafront close to the lovely Expanse Hotel, formed the starting point and it was from there that I began walking up and onto the gorgeous, flat, green plateau that runs up the coast to the Sewerby Cricket Club, where the track narrows into a trail that continues to Danes Dyke, South Landing, Flamborough and so on up the coast. In the past I have had the pleasure of following this trail all the way to Filey.

The day was so lovely, the sun was shining, birds were darting to and fro in front of me as I walked and a cooling breeze kept the air fresh. Along the cliff top, there are numerous small hills of dark soil that have been unearthed by moles, the remnants of their subterranean excavations. I have been told that this earth is especially rich and good for gardens.

At the north end of the clifftop walk is the site of the Sewerby Cricket Club, with its sea-view pitch, practice pitch and clubhouse. Many seats are spaced around the pitch for spectators and the whole scene is overlooked by the Georgian Sewerby Hall and gardens. 

One complete circuit of the Cricket Pitch became the conclusion of the day's walk and formed a logical end to the Linear walk. 

It is becoming very interesting to experience the performance in different locations and under different weather conditions. I feel it is beginning to develop a character of its own.


'No holiday' - Sewerby Cliffs, Bridlington, UK - 4th August 2017

The recording can also be viewed on my youtube.com channel here: https://youtu.be/6ZTzwIJvQm4