James Hugonin and Howard Skempton

Abstract

This output demonstrates Hugonin’s long-term interest in collaborating with musicians (e.g. Gavin Bryars at Tate St. Ives in the last RAE). Hugonin and his current collaborator, the composer Howard Skempton, were invited to develop an exhibition-performance for Ingleby Gallery by the director, Richard Ingleby. This follows the success of ‘Late Mix: Hugonin Portrait’, performed at the Sage Gateshead during the researcher’s curatorial project at BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art (see output 2 above). This Hugonin-Skempton project in Edinburgh was part of a series of thirty two-person exhibitions that responded to conversations between different art forms (e.g. Richard Forster and Richard Artschwager; Francesca Woodman and Richard Serra) The music in this output was performed in the earlier Sage version by members the Northern Sinfonia (7th June 2006). On that occasion the accompanying programme also included works by Arvo Part, Steve Reich, Morton Feldman and Lou Harrison. Hugonin draws many parallels between his own practice and developments in contemporary music over the past three decades. There are interesting correspondences between his process-oriented approach and the composition and performance of minimalist works by American composers such as Steve Reich and Morton Feldman. The research that informs this output questions the independence of visual and performing arts practitioner when the creators are bound by a shared interest in formal structure and rhythmic systems. At Ingleby Gallery the collaborators juxtaposed visual and musical manifestations of their left-handedness. This collaboration with Skempton is the latest, and most experimental manifestation of Hugonin’s professional association with the Ingleby Gallery which has led to the sale of works to renowned collectors of contemporary art such Stuart Carey Welch (USA) and David Coe (Australia)