Fri, March 07, 2025

The Process: Why did the British build a hedge across India?

And how did it manage to disappear with barely a trace?  Artists Himali Singh Soin and David Soin Tappeser (Hylozoic/Desires) go on a journey through the archives to unearth the story of the Great Hedge of India, a 4,000km long hedge grown by the British East India Company in the 1840s, to control the flow of salt across the continent. But despite being one of the longest of its kind in history, no visual trace of the hedge can be found in the archives Ahead of their installation in the courtyard of Somerset House, Himali and David tell the story of the hedge and reflect on the complex weave of fiction, truth and silence that surrounds it. In this podcast they ask, what can nature teach us about archives? And how can art create truth retrospectively? They are joined by Dr Alexis Rider, a historian of science at Cambridge, who worked alongside the artists as a researcher on the project and Professor Rohan Deb Roy, a lecturer in South Asian History at Reading, who looks at the ways the termite undermined the authority of empire by eating into both the hedge and the official papers of the state. Produced by: Alannah Chance Presented by: Himali Singh Soin and David Soin Tappeser Series presenter: Laurent John Mixed by: Mike Woolley Theme Music:Ka Baird Additional Music:Suraj Nepal, Rahul Popawala, Ish S and  Surabhi Saraf Podcast produced in response to ' Salt Cosmologies ', an exhibition at Somerset House 20 Feb – 27 Apr 2025. You can also watch a film produced about the artwork on our online platform Channel .

Wed, February 05, 2025

Our Future | Soil: Common Ground Podcast

Our Future is tied to the future of our soil. Our decisions as to how we care for and use it matter. Soil teaches us that cycles are ongoing, and even in decline every day offers us opportunities for new beginnings. In this final episode Shenece Oretha explores the regenerative qualities of soil and composting as a model for personal redemption.   We hear from Palestinian grower Mohammed Saleh whose life story offers a personal story of hope, looking at how permaculture and art can help to heal the destructive impacts of war. Somerset Studios artist Harun Morrision ’s singing compost invites us to see decay in a new light and Fin Jordâo lays out how composting can be a radical action for rethinking our relationships with each other and the planet.  Does the future hold a closer, more natural relationship with the soil by rethinking our relationship to burial? Radical undertaker Ru Callander reconsiders our attitude to death. The series launches off from the Somerset House exhibition SOIL: The World at Our Feet . Presented by Shenece Oretha Produced by Jo Barratt and Alannah Chance  Exec produced by Alannah Chance and Eleanor Ritter-Scott.  The series is mixed by Mike Woolley Original music by Andrew Pekler.

Wed, January 29, 2025

Our History | SOIL: COMMON GROUND

Much of the history of human making springs from the soil. Cuneiform, the earliest form of writing, was engraved into clay; paint pigments come from minerals in the soil; and much of our material history is held in ceramics. But soil is not neutral; it is deeply entangled with politics of ownership embedded in the land. In this episode Shenece Oretha probes the ways the soil and clay are inspiring artists today, looking at the stories soil can tell about our past and our potential future. Ceramicist and writer Jennifer Lucy Allan reflects on the ways clay connects us to the earliest forms of making. Artists Annalee Davis and Lauren Gault look at the ways soil bears witness to our histories, from the trauma of the plantation to the deep time of paleontology. We create art from soil, but through our extraction and interaction, it is also changed. How can we heal our relationship with the soil and in so doing, transform our relationship with the planet? Farmer and food justice advocate Leah Penniman unpacks how indigenous practices of soil care can reverse some of the most egregious effects of climate change.  The series launches off from the Somerset House exhibition SOIL: The World at Our Feet . Presented by Shenece Oretha Produced by Jo Barratt and Alannah Chance  Exec produced by Alannah Chance and Eleanor Ritter-Scott.  The series is mixed by Mike Woolley Original music by Andrew Pekler.

Wed, January 22, 2025

Our Beginning | SOIL: COMMON GROUND

Our entire existence is dependent on our relationship with soil. As awareness builds of the enormity of the ecological crisis that we are facing, a growing number of artists are engaging with soil as a material in their work.  This three part series responds to the Somerset House exhibition ‘Soil: The World at Our Feet’, unearthing soil's role in our future through the work of artists and thinkers working with it. Soil is the basis of many creation stories around the world. It is our beginning, and it is what we will return to. In Episode 1 of Common Ground we look at soil as the matter from which life emerges. Exploring growth, beginnings and the ways soil as a material offers unique opportunities for exploration.  We hear from artist Asad Raza who makes ‘neo-soil’ from scratch and covers the floor of galleries with it. Artist Eve Tagny ’s work examines the cultivation of the Rose as a way to ask questions about the ways we interact with the world. Agroecologist Nicole Masters and farmer Abby Rose , lay out what soil is and why it holds the key to our survival.  The episode is set within the garden of our presenter Shenece Oretha . Working with soil has shaped her relationship to the place where she lives and informed her art practice.  SOIL: Common Ground is a three-part podcast series exploring what soil can teach us about being human, through the lens of art. Soil is unsung, and largely hidden from view. What if we were to put it in the foreground? To think of it as a collaborator?   The series launches off from the Somerset House exhibition SOIL: The World at Our Feet . Presented by Shenece Oretha Produced by Jo Barratt and Alannah Chance  Exec produced by Alannah Chance and Eleanor Ritter-Scott.  The series is mixed by Mike Woolley Original music by Andrew Pekler Episode Image: Asda Raza - credit Luca Guadagnini.

Trailer · Tue, January 21, 2025

SOIL: Common Ground

Soil is unsung, and largely hidden from view. What if we were to put it in the foreground? To think of it as a collaborator?   Across three episodes, presenter and Somerset House Studios artist Shenece Oretha traces the life cycle of soil, from it’s foundational role at the beginning of life with artist Asad Raza, through to its manifestation as one of the earliest creative materials, with ceramist and writer Jennifer Lucy Allan. We hear from artists Annalee Davis and Lauren Gault on the ways soil bears witness our difficult histories, before exploring decay and the regenerative powers of soil in our final episode, with the work of artist Mohamed Salah and radical undertaker Rupert Callender.  The series launches off from the Somerset House exhibition SOIL: The World at Our Feet . Presented by Shenece Oretha Produced by Jo Barratt and Alannah Chance  Exec produced by Alannah Chance and Eleanor Ritter-Scott.  The series is mixed by Mike Woolley Original music by Andrew Pekler.

Thu, December 05, 2024

The Process: More Than a Space - The Club in Black Queer History

Why has the club been so pivotal to the history of black queer placemaking?   For artist and filmmaker Topher Campbell, growing up as a Black queer man in 1980s and 90s Britain, the club provided a sanctuary from the judgement and hostility of mainstream society. It became a space for community, self-discovery, and, as a care leaver, a sense of home. As co-founder of the rukus! archive and curator of the exhibition Making a rukus!: Black Queer Histories Through Love and Resistance , Campbell reflects on how the club scene reverberates through the archive, one of Europe's largest Black LGBTQIA+ collections, and its vital role in Black queer placemaking.  In this podcast, Campbell speaks with two pioneers of the Black queer club scene: DJ Biggy C (aka Calvin Dawkins) in London, who helped create space for Black music in the capital’s predominantly white gay clubs, and US based Madison Moore, academic, DJ, and author of Fabulous: The Rise of the Beautiful Eccentric . Madison discusses his mission to reclaim techno for the black femme community and how fabulousness can offer both mask and armour for Black queer club-goers.  Madison is an assistant professor at Brown University. For further support, we’d like to highlight the following resources:   UK Black Pride   BLKOUT   Black Beetle Health   Galop   Produced by: Alannah Chance  Presented by: Topher Campbell  Series presenter: Laurent John  Mixed by Mike Woolley  Theme Music: Ka Baird   Additional Music: Shaun J Wright and Alinka 

Trailer · Wed, September 25, 2024

The Process: Episode 16 Trailer - What is the legacy of the 2011 riots?

What one site in Croydon can tell us about the biggest moment of civil unrest in Britain in a generation. Listen to the full episode: Apple | Spotify   Artist Imran Perretta was in his early 20s when the riots began in 2011. What started in London quickly spread across England, but it was the footage of a furniture shop set on fire in Croydon which stayed with Imran. Now, 13 years later, Imran revisits that moment in a new commission for Somerset House Studios which recreates Reeves Corner in the gallery space, accompanied by a new work for string quartet, entitled ‘A Requiem for the Dispossessed.’  In this episode of The Process, Imran heads back to Reeves Corner to reflect on its legacy today. We hear from Tim Newburn, professor of criminology and social policy at the LSE, about the history of civil unrest in Britain and the nature of riots.  Croydon-based community artist Natalie Mitchell shares how community art projects can transform the way we think about public space. We follow Imran as he records with the Manchester Camerata and hear insights from sound designer Rob Szeliga on the ways in which music can affect how we feel.   As the requiem builds to its crescendo and the site lies silent, we ask: what does this patch of land say about the legacy of social unrest in Britain? Why has such a monumental uprising been largely forgotten? And how can sound tell this story in new ways?  We’re sensitive to the fact that while this subject matter is important to explore, it may be triggering to some audiences.  For further support, we’d like to highlight the following resources:   Healing Justice https://healingjusticeldn.org   Resist and Renew https://resistrenew.com   Radical Therapist Network: https://www.radicaltherapistnetwork.com     The Black, African and Asian Network (BAATN): https://www.baatn.org.uk   Credits   Produced by Alannah Chance  Presented by Imran Perretta  Series presenter is Laurent John  Mixed by Mike Wooley  Theme Music by Ka Baird with additional music by Harry Murdoch 

Wed, September 25, 2024

The Process: What is the legacy of the 2011 riots?

What one site in Croydon can tell us about the biggest moment of civil unrest in Britain in a generation. Artist Imran Perretta was in his early 20s when the riots began in 2011. What started in London quickly spread across England, but it was the footage of a furniture shop set on fire in Croydon which stayed with Imran. Now, 13 years later, Imran revisits that moment in a new commission for Somerset House Studios which recreates Reeves Corner in the gallery space, accompanied by a new work for string quartet, entitled ‘A Requiem for the Dispossessed.’  In this episode of The Process, Imran heads back to Reeves Corner to reflect on its legacy today. We hear from Tim Newburn, professor of criminology and social policy at the LSE, about the history of civil unrest in Britain and the nature of riots.  Croydon-based community artist Natalie Mitchell shares how community art projects can transform the way we think about public space. We follow Imran as he records with the Manchester Camerata and hear insights from sound designer Rob Szeliga on the ways in which music can affect how we feel.   As the requiem builds to its crescendo and the site lies silent, we ask: what does this patch of land say about the legacy of social unrest in Britain? Why has such a monumental uprising been largely forgotten? And how can sound tell this story in new ways?  We’re sensitive to the fact that while this subject matter is important to explore, it may be triggering to some audiences.  For further support, we’d like to highlight the following resources:   Healing Justice https://healingjusticeldn.org   Resist and Renew https://resistrenew.com   Radical Therapist Network: https://www.radicaltherapistnetwork.com     The Black, African and Asian Network (BAATN): https://www.baatn.org.uk   Credits   Produced by Alannah Chance  Presented by Imran Perretta  Series presenter is Laurent John  Mixed by Mike Wooley  Theme Music by Ka Baird with additional music by Harry Murdoch  The Process: A Somerset House Podcast    An artist-led podcast series which explores the new ideas, big questions and surprising tangents which emerge from the artistic process.  Drawing on the creative community both on site at Somerset House and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows artists as they explore one idea they’re currently pursuing, to see where it ends up.  From financial astrology to the black renaissance, quantum listening to the transformative powers of cute, along the way we hear from a cross-section of thinkers who have inspired them to help shape w

Fri, April 12, 2024

The Process: The Darker Side of Cute with Sean-Kierre Lyons

How can cuteness be used to sugar coat difficult messages?  In this episode we join another artist commissioned for the Somerset House exhibition CUTE, Brooklyn based Sean-Kierre Lyons , to explore how cute characters have been used to tackle sensitive ideas from the middle ages on.  In her practice, Sean-Kierre brings the grotesque and the cute together to approach challenging themes. Much of her work is inspired by cartoon animation, specifically its roots in racist caricature. For her Somerset House installation Sean-Kierre created a dragon-like gargoyle called Benevolence, one of nine protector gods she is developing, inspired by the 90s cartoon ‘Gargoyles’ Here Sean-Kierre exposes the double edged sword of cute, looking at how cute characters have been used to mask malicious intent, as in the case of the animated characters used in war propaganda, as well as to deliver moral reminders, as far back as medieval masonry. She talks to animator of the Big Blue, Gyimah Gariba about how he uses cuteness to demonstrate the vulnerability of earth’s climate and art historian Dr Janetta Rebold Benton explains how gargoyles could be thought to be a form of cartoons of the middle ages. Contains strong language from the start.  CUTE: An Exhibition Exploring the Irresistible Force of Cuteness in Contemporary Culture, at Somerset House, 25 Jan - 14 Apr 2024. Principal Partner: Sanrio Producer - Alannah Chance Exec Producer - Eleanor Ritter-Scott Series presenter - Laurent John

Thu, March 28, 2024

The Process: FELT CUTE, MIGHT SHAPESHIFT LATER with Hannah Diamond

Hannah Diamond reflects on the transformative powers of cute Cute aesthetics have exploded into pop culture. We use filters to make ourselves look like cute cats, dot our texts with hearts and smiley faces and our phones ping with alerts from cartoon animals reminding us to study French or change energy suppliers. Brands have been using cute images to sell us things since the dawn of advertising but with the rise of social media we are increasingly becoming the brand, as we seek to cutify our online and IRL selves. Over the last ten years the music collective and label PC Music have been playing with the aesthetics of pop music, internet culture and consumerism to suggest that artifice doesn’t need to be inauthentic. Artist and musician Hannah Diamond is one of the founding members, known for her hyper-real, hyper-pop art direction and an ear for sugary hooks. For CUTE, an exhibition at Somerset House, Hannah was commissioned to curate a room in the style of a girl’s sleepover accompanied by a stream of music videos that embody the power of cute. In this episode we go deeper into the ways pop music and cuteness intersect, celebrating the ways plasticity can be liberating rather than limiting. Hannah talks to fellow label affiliate Hayden Dunham , the brains behind the Hey QT project, about self transformation through world building and Dazed journalist Gunseli Yalcinkaya explains why the internet has such an enduring obsession with cute. CUTE: An Exhibition Exploring the Irresistible Force of Cuteness in Contemporary Culture , at Somerset House, 25 Jan - 14 Apr 2024. Principal Partner: Sanrio Producer - Alannah Chance Exec Producer - Eleanor Ritter-Scott Series presenter - Laurent John

Fri, March 22, 2024

Not Strictly Speaking: The Disembodied Voice with Prem Sahib and Felicia Atkinson

What does it mean to use the voice of others within a performance, text or recording? In this episode of Not Strictly Speaking, we look at the ways in which the voice is used both in service of power, and as a way of reclaiming agency. Prem Sahib ’s new sound performance for Assembly, Alleus , takes a speech by former Home Secretary Suella Braverman and renders it into a new form through layers of processing and repetition, suggesting the idea of a curse or malediction. Resisting the idea that one hostile voice can speak for the many, Prem explores how political rhetoric can speak on behalf of others, and take possession of bodies at a distance. Composer and sound artist Felicia Atkinson , who has composed the sound across the podcast series, considers the boundaries between thought and speech, looking at how recorded speech and text can intertwine. Felicia’s work with voice plays with space, distance and found sound, inviting the everyday into her recordings. In this episode, she discusses the role the voice plays within her work, the writers who live within her and how the recorded voice can be slippery and shapeshifting. Alleus by Prem Sahib was co-commissioned and presented by the Roberts Institute of Art and Somerset House Studios as part of Assembly, 2024. Not Strictly Speaking Series  The voice is the first sound we encounter and the first instrument we learn to play, we are subject to the disembodied voice of politicians while the communal voice is raised in protest.  In conjunction with this year’s Assembly at Somerset House, this 3 part podcast series explores different manifestations of the voice and how it informs our ways of thinking.  Each episode follows one artist featured in the 2024 programme, as they unpack their work with the voice in dialogue with another artist. Vocalist and composer Elaine Mitchener is joined by the pioneer of extended vocal technique Joan La Barbara to explore the voice as an instrument, looking at how the human voice can channel meaning without words. Artist Prem Sahib plays with the shape shifting nature of political speech and its potential to inhabit other bodies alongside composer Felicia Atkinson on the mercurial nature of recording, while the vocal work of sound artist Vivienne Griffin is placed in dialogue with artist Helen Cammock on the concept of the voice as a site of resistance.  The sound for the series is composed by French composer and sound artist Felicia Atkinson who crafts a series of bespoke sound commissions for each episode. Commissioned by Somerset House Studios Producer - Alannah Chance Exec Producer - Eleanor Ritter-Scott Series Composer - Felicia Atkinson Mix - Harry Murdoch

Thu, March 21, 2024

Not Strictly Speaking: The Voice as Resistance with Vivienne Griffin and Helen Cammock

The communal voice has a long history within the resistance movement, from African American spirituals, to the protest songs of the civil rights movement and the current pro-Palestine marches. In this episode we explore the enduring power of group singing and how it can embody resistance and resilience with Turner prize winning artist Helen Cammock and artist and Somerset House Studios resident, Vivienne Griffin.   Vivienne's sound work often centres around the voice, both her own and those of small choral ensembles. For their piece for Assembly they are drawing on the voice of the harp as a symbol of resistance within the history of British colonialism.  The work will be performed by Northern Irish harpist Úna Monaghan alongside a mechanised harp created by Vivienne, who will together interpret a text score.  Helen Cammock works across film, printmaking, performance and writing. Her work explores the role of the voice within the creation and maintenance of power structures as well as how the communal voice can subvert the dominant narratives of history. Here Helen unpacks how her work with communal voice has interrogated the idea of the voice as a site of resistance and the body as resilience. Not Strictly Speaking Series The voice is the first sound we encounter and the first instrument we learn to play, we are subject to the disembodied voice of politicians while the communal voice is raised in protest.  In conjunction with this year’s Assembly at Somerset House, this 3 part podcast series explores different manifestations of the voice and how it informs our ways of thinking. Each episode follows one artist featured in the 2024 programme, as they unpack their work with the voice in dialogue with another artist. Vocalist and composer Elaine Mitchener is joined by the pioneer of extended vocal technique Joan La Barbara to explore the voice as an instrument, looking at how the human voice can channel meaning without words. Artist Prem Sahib plays with the shape shifting nature of political speech and its potential to inhabit other bodies alongside composer Felicia Atkinson on the mercurial nature of recording, while the vocal work of sound artist Vivienne Griffin is placed in dialogue with artist Helen Cammock on the concept of the voice as a site of resistance. The sound for the series is composed by French composer and sound artist Felicia Atkinson who crafts a series of bespoke sound commissions for each episode. Commissioned by Somerset House Studios Producer - Alannah Chance Exec Producer - Eleanor Ritter-Scott Series Composer - Felicia Atkinson Mix - Harry Murdoch Assembly was supported by PRS Foundation’s The Open Fund for Organisations, John S Cohen Foundation, Kitmapper, The Wire Magazine and Goeth

Wed, March 20, 2024

Not Strictly Speaking: The Voice is the Instrument with Elaine Mitchener & Joan La Barbara

The voice is something we all share and yet rarely do we explore the full range of our instrument. Ahead of Assembly at Somerset House we talk to two vocal artists who stretch the capacities of the voice as a sound producing instrument to look at the ways the voice can channel meaning beyond words; voice artist and composer Elaine Mitchener , who is resident at Somerset House Studios; and the pioneer of Extended Vocal Technique, the renowned vocal artist and composer Joan La Barbara .   Elaine’s vocal work looks at ways of speaking beyond language and explores moments of historical injustice through vocalisation and movement. In her piece for Assembly, 'These Cost The Earth', she explores the dynamics of waste consumerism, in particular the environmental and human impact of the clothes we send to landfill.  She uses the Chairman’s Staircase in the New Wing at Somerset House as the site for a choreographed piece which articulates this destructive cycle, giving life to old clothes and evoking the journeys they have been on.  The groundbreaking vocalist Joan La Barbara is one of the first artists to play with extended vocal technique, a technique which uses the voice as a sound producing instrument.  As a performer she has worked with Cage, Feldman, Reich and Glass and as a composer and improviser she has been writing her own material since the 1970s. As one of the early pioneers of this form of vocal experimentation, we hear as Joan unpacks how she developed her instrument, her work with imaginary language and the idea of super presence in relation to performance. Not Strictly Speaking Series  The voice is the first sound we encounter and the first instrument we learn to play, we are subject to the disembodied voice of politicians while the communal voice is raised in protest.  In conjunction with this year’s Assembly at Somerset House, this 3 part podcast series explores different manifestations of the voice and how it informs our ways of thinking.  Each episode follows one artist featured in the 2024 programme, as they unpack their work with the voice in dialogue with another artist. Vocalist and composer Elaine Mitchener is joined by the pioneer of extended vocal technique Joan La Barbara to explore the voice as an instrument, looking at how the human voice can channel meaning without words. Artist Prem Sahib plays with the shape shifting nature of political speech and its potential to inhabit other bodies alongside composer Felicia Atkinson on the mercurial nature of recording, while the vocal work of sound artist Vivienne Griffin is placed in dialogue with artist Helen Cammock on the concept of the voice as a site of resistance.  The sound for the series is composed by Fre

Wed, March 20, 2024

Not Strictly Speaking: Series Trailer

A three-part podcast series, released 20-22 March 2024, exploring different manifestations of the voice, produced in conjunction with Somerset House Studios' Assembly. Each episode follows artists featured in the 2024 programme, as they unpack the power of the voice beyond speech; examining it as a form of possession and how we might give voice to the inanimate.   Vocal artist and composer Elaine Mitchener looks at how the human voice can extend through objects and lay bare the inequities of global supply chains. Artist Prem Sahib plays with the shape shifting nature of political speech and its potential to inhabit other bodies, while sound artist Vivienne Griffin shares research centred on the concept of the harp as a voice of resistance.  The sound for the series is composed by French artist Felicia Atkinson who crafts a series of bespoke sound commissions in response to the theme. Assembly is supported by PRS Foundation’s The Open Fund for Organisations, John S Cohen Foundation, Kitmapper, The Wire Magazine and Goethe Institute London.

Mon, February 19, 2024

The Process: Is animal breeding a form of sculpture? | Revital Cohen & Tuur Van Balen

Artists Revival Cohen & Tuur Van Balen explore how humans have transformed the animals that we live with. The way in which we think about animals is riven with contradictions. We dote on our pets yet consume vast amounts of animals as meat. The UK consistently donates more money to animal welfare charities than any other cause and yet have created pet breeds with horrifying health defects. Revival Cohen & Tuur Van Balen are an artist duo who are interested in these ambiguities, in particular the moment when animal bodies are transformed into objects of human desire. They’ve made work with thoroughbred race horses, bred their own batch of genetically modified goldfish and in 2023 they were the recipients of the UAL’s Creative Computing Institute x Somerset House Experimental Technology Fellowship 2023, offering a unique development and commission opportunity for an artist looking to incorporate new technology within their work. This resulted in a new film, May the Fox Take You for CHANNEL, our online space for art, process and ideas.    In this episode of The Process we join them in the research process for their next work, which continues to explore a question central to their practice: can animal breeding be considered a form of sculpture? We talk to historian Michael Worboys about how the Victorians created the modern dog breed and writer and curator Filipa Ramos discusses how art has informed the way we think about the animal body.  Revital Cohen & Tuur Van Balen were in residence at Somerset House Studios in 2023. May The Fox Take You was commissioned by Somerset House in collaboration with UAL Creative Computing Institute. Producer - Alannah Chance Exec Producer - Eleanor Ritter-Scott Series presenter - Laurent John

Wed, January 31, 2024

The Process: Is Failure More Productive Than Success? | Tom Staples, Makerversity

The road to success is paved with inspirational quotes about failure.  But could failure be more productive than success? In this episode of The Process we step inside the community of designers on site at Makerversity in Somerset House to explore the role of mistakes in the design process.  Founding member Tom Stables talks to biomaterial designer Cassie Quinn, who makes sustainable sequins out of household waste. She shares stories of the mistakes that ended up being transformative to her practice.  He then sits down with performance artist and clown Julia Masli to talk about her latest Edinburgh show which is designed to go wrong, to learn how to fail more spectacularly.  The Process The creative process is inspired by worlds beyond itself.  The Somerset House podcast series 'The Process' brings those worlds together, platforming the big conversations which go on to inspire new work. Drawing on our creative community on site and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows one artist or curator as they explore an idea from their practice to see where it ends up. Producer - Alannah Chance Exec Producer - Eleanor Ritter-Scott Presenter - Tom Stables Series presenter - Laurent John

Sat, December 02, 2023

The Process: The Black British Renaissance with Andrew Ibi, Jazzie B & Martine Rose

Tracing the legacy of Black British fashion with Andrew Ibi, Jazzie B & Martine Rose. The late 80s to the early 90s saw a Black cultural renaissance in Britain. Artists and designers like Sonia Boyce, Joe Casely-Hayford and Soul II Soul were breaking new ground across the arts and changing the landscape for Black creatives. While putting together The Missing Thread exhibition, co-curator Andrew Ibi (Black Orientated Legacy Development Agency), realised that despite its significance this era hasn’t been given its due. In this episode of the Process, Andrew rectifies that, tracing the thread back to a lost generation of Black creatives to explore how Black fashion arose from the club and the back room sewing machine rather than the catwalk. Andrew looks back at that time with Jazzie B, whose group Soul II Soul soundtracked the era, and with cutting edge designer Martine Rose, who has worked with everyone from Drake to Kendrick and Balenciaga. The Process The creative process is inspired by worlds beyond itself.  The Somerset House podcast series 'The Process' brings those worlds together, platforming the big conversations which go on to inspire new work. Drawing on our creative community on site and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows one artist or curator as they explore an idea from their practice to see where it ends up. Credits Produced by Alannah Chance Presented by Andrew Ibi Series presenter is Laurent John Sound Design by Nick Ryan The Missing Thread is sponsored by Morgan Stanley

Tue, July 25, 2023

Soft Life: The Earth

What if the way we're approaching the crisis is part of the crisis? We look at the effect our endless drive for productivity is having on the planet and how we’re intimately entangled with the natural world with Somerset House Studios artist Sam Williams on the invisible labour of the earthworm, poet Jason Allen-Paisant on tenderness in rural Jamaica, systems theorist Nafeez Ahmed on why the old systems are crumbling and artist Natalie Sharp on her love of ecosex. Soft Life: Experiments In New Ways of Being Soft Life is part of a growing number of movements challenging the way we work. How can soft approaches in art help us rethink our relationship to time, the body and the earth? In March 2020, the non-stop nature of our 24/7 world came to a stop. For many in the Western world, it allowed us a space to reconsider the way we value our time and with that our relationship to work. Now, amidst the strikes and the resignations, a new movement  is emerging called ‘Soft Life’. which seeks to sidestep the values of hustle culture for slowness and ease.  How can softness open up new ways of being in the world and create different types of value? Could it be a way of healing our relationship with the natural world at a point of crisis? In this four-part series we take the idea of ‘soft life’ as a launch off point to explore alternative ideas around work, time, the body and ecology emanating from Somerset House and beyond. We talk to radical thinkers, artists and writers, who are carving out these new ways of being in the body, centring the soft and the in-between, finding space for rest and looking at ways of expanding time beyond the clock. Soft Life is produced by Alannah Chance and Axel Kacoutié With sound by Axel Kacoutié and additional music by Ellen Zweig 

Tue, July 25, 2023

Soft Life: The Body

How can the soft body challenge social hierarchies? We turn our gaze towards the soft life of the body and unpack new ways of thinking about embodiment in artistic practice with Somerset House studios artists Florence Peake on radical softness in somatics, choreographer and writer Dr Martin Hargreaves on the history of protest through softness in dance, Ilona Sagar on rendering bodies hard through architecture and disabled film maker Jameisha Prescod on the colonial history of black pain. Soft Life: Experiments In New Ways of Being Soft Life is part of a growing number of movements challenging the way we work. How can soft approaches in art help us rethink our relationship to time, the body and the earth? In March 2020, the non-stop nature of our 24/7 world came to a stop. For many in the Western world, it allowed us a space to reconsider the way we value our time and with that our relationship to work. Now, amidst the strikes and the resignations, a new movement  is emerging called ‘Soft Life’. which seeks to sidestep the values of hustle culture for slowness and ease.  How can softness open up new ways of being in the world and create different types of value? Could it be a way of healing our relationship with the natural world at a point of crisis? In this four-part series we take the idea of ‘soft life’ as a launch off point to explore alternative ideas around work, time, the body and ecology emanating from Somerset House and beyond. We talk to radical thinkers, artists and writers, who are carving out these new ways of being in the body, centring the soft and the in-between, finding space for rest and looking at ways of expanding time beyond the clock. Soft Life is produced by Alannah Chance and Axel Kacoutié With sound by Axel Kacoutié and additional music by Ellen Zweig 

Tue, July 25, 2023

Soft Life: Time

How can we make time free? We contemplate different ways of experiencing time beyond the linear, with Somerset House Studios artist Shenece Oretha on transforming time through the practice of listening, sociologist Judy Wajcman on unpicking progress from speed in the digital sphere and psychologist Dr Ruth Ogden on how our experience of time is relational and whether it’s possible to conceive of ‘free time’ in a modern world. Soft Life: Experiments In New Ways of Being Soft Life is part of a growing number of movements challenging the way we work. How can soft approaches in art help us rethink our relationship to time, the body and the earth? In March 2020, the non-stop nature of our 24/7 world came to a stop. For many in the Western world, it allowed us a space to reconsider the way we value our time and with that our relationship to work. Now, amidst the strikes and the resignations, a new movement  is emerging called ‘Soft Life’. which seeks to sidestep the values of hustle culture for slowness and ease.  How can softness open up new ways of being in the world and create different types of value? Could it be a way of healing our relationship with the natural world at a point of crisis?  In this four-part series we take the idea of ‘soft life’ as a launch off point to explore alternative ideas around work, time, the body and ecology emanating from Somerset House and beyond. We talk to radical thinkers, artists and writers, who are carving out these new ways of being in the body, centring the soft and the in-between, finding space for rest and looking at ways of expanding time beyond the clock. Soft Life is produced by Alannah Chance and Axel Kacoutié With sound by Axel Kacoutié and additional music by Ellen Zweig  This episode includes the following sound works by Shenece Oretha: Conspiracy Listening Wholes at/Tribute Ah So It Go, Ah No So it Go, Go So! Who Can’t Hear Must Feel 

Tue, July 25, 2023

Soft Life: Work

Our ways of working aren’t working. How can art offer new ways of being outside of the values of hustle culture?  We explore changing attitudes to work post-pandemic and re-evaluate the importance of rest as a creative space. We hear from Bayo Akomolafe about the fertile spaces of the cracks, Black Power Naps on rest as a radical act and we lie down to contemplate art in Somerset House with artist Raquel Meseguer Zafe, after her workshop for this year’s Hyper Functional Ultra Healthy programme. Soft Life: Experiments In New Ways of Being Soft Life is part of a growing number of movements challenging the way we work. How can soft approaches in art help us rethink our relationship to time, the body and the earth? In March 2020, the non-stop nature of our 24/7 world came to a stop. For many in the Western world, it allowed us a space to reconsider the way we value our time and with that our relationship to work. Now, amidst the strikes and the resignations, a new movement  is emerging called ‘Soft Life’. which seeks to sidestep the values of hustle culture for slowness and ease.  How can softness open up new ways of being in the world and create different types of value? Could it be a way of healing our relationship with the natural world at a point of crisis? In this four-part series we take the idea of ‘soft life’ as a launch off point to explore alternative ideas around work, time, the body and ecology emanating from Somerset House and beyond. We talk to radical thinkers, artists and writers, who are carving out these new ways of being in the body, centring the soft and the in-between, finding space for rest and looking at ways of expanding time beyond the clock. Soft Life is produced by Alannah Chance and Axel Kacoutié With sound by Axel Kacoutié and additional music by Ellen Zweig 

Trailer · Tue, July 25, 2023

Soft Life: Experiments In New Ways of Being

A new limited series for the Somerset House Podcast Soft Life is part of a growing number of movements challenging the way we work. How can soft approaches in art help us rethink our relationship to time, the body and the earth?   In March 2020, the non-stop nature of our 24/7 world came to a stop. For many in the Western world, it allowed us a space to reconsider the way we value our time and with that our relationship to work. Now, amidst the strikes and the resignations, a new movement  is emerging called ‘Soft Life’. which seeks to sidestep the values of hustle culture for slowness and ease.  How can softness open up new ways of being in the world and create different types of value? Could it be a way of healing our relationship with the natural world at a point of crisis?   In this four-part series we take the idea of ‘soft life’ as a launch off point to explore alternative ideas around work, time, the body and ecology emanating from Somerset House and beyond. We talk to radical thinkers, artists and writers, who are carving out these new ways of being in the body, centring the soft and the in-between, finding space for rest and looking at ways of expanding time beyond the clock.   Soft Life is produced by Alannah Chance and Axel Kacoutié With sound by Axel Kacoutié and additional music by Ellen Zweig

Wed, March 15, 2023

The Process: Geometry for Aliens

Artist Leila Dear explores whether geometry could be a universal language   What do our attempts to communicate with extra-terrestrials say about us?  Jerwood artist in residence, Leila Dear uses geometry as a way of thinking about interdependence and non-human design.  In this episode of The Process she explores whether geometry could be used as a ‘Lingua Cosmica’, a universal language by which to communicate with other intelligences beyond earth.  Given the prevalence of geometric patterning within the natural world and the universal limitations of physics, could geometry provide a way of relating to other minds without preferencing our own?    She puts the idea to Seth Shostak, senior astronomer at the SETI institute (the Search for Extra-terrestrial Life) who is sure we will find evidence of aliens within the next 20 years.  This led Leila to reflect on the other forms of mind we already share the earth with. She is joined by science writer Philip Ball to discuss how a better understanding of animal and plant intelligence might help us de-centre the human.     The Process The creative process is inspired by worlds beyond itself.  The Somerset House podcast series 'The Process' brings those worlds together, platforming the big conversations which go on to inspire new work.  Drawing on our creative community on site and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows one artist as they explore an idea from their practice to see where it ends up.  We hear their journey from the studio on, as they invite other thinkers to discuss an idea that has come out of a work in progress and help shape where it might go next.  Producer: Alannah Chance   Series Presenter: Laurent John   Theme music: Ka Baird   Additional music: Aylu (Mana Records) Lord Tusk   Mastered by: Nick Ryan   Produced as part of the Creators Programme 2022   Supported by The Rothschild Foundation 

Wed, March 01, 2023

The Process: Slimy Worlds & Quantum Listening

The artist Libby Heaney spent many years as a quantum physicist researching the concept of quantum entanglement, the way objects can affect each other even when separated by vast distances, or what Einstein called ‘spooky action at a distance’.  It’s an idea that challenges our assumptions about the physical world and for Libby it offers up fertile ways of rethinking old hierarchies. In this podcast we take up this mystery and dance with it, seeing where metaphors of entanglement can take us. Firstly Libby talks to biologist Susanne Wedlich about slime and how this shape shifting substance can help us get closer to the quantum world. She then sits down with deep listener and dream expert IONE , the partner and lifelong collaborator of Deep listening pioneer Pauline Oliveros. IONE and Libby meditate on how a practice of quantum listening can entangle us with both the physical and the metaphysical world, including a connection beyond death. - Libby Heaney is a London based artist with a PhD in Quantum Physics, who works across moving image, performance, installation and physical media, usually combining these with advanced technologies such as machine learning, game engines & quantum computing - a new type of computer that processes information on particles following the weird laws of quantum physics.  Heaney is widely known as the first person to make art with quantum computers. Her artwork Ent-, commissioned by Light Art Space, 2022, has been exhibited across continents and received substantial international press in places like Der Welt, Wallpaper* and Spike Art.   Before retraining as an artist at Central St. Martins, London, Heaney completed a PhD in Quantum Information Science at the Uninversity of Leeds and led her own research at the University of Oxford, publishing around 20 papers on the topic of quantum entanglement. She won the HSBC and Intitute of Physics, UK, Very Early Career Woman Physicist of the year in 2008.  - The Process The creative process is inspired by worlds beyond itself.  The Somerset House podcast series 'The Process' brings those worlds together, platforming the big conversations which go on to inspire new work.  Drawing on our creative community on site and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows one artist as they explore an idea from their practice to see where it ends up.  We hear their journey from the studio on, as they invite other thinkers to discuss an idea that has come out of a work in progress and help shape where it might go next.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Theme music: Ka Baird Additional music: Pauline Oliveros and IONE, Aylu (Mana Records) <a href="https://protect-eu.mimecast.com/r/HCocEe7aNqhdCknwuSLAZFrcuWXHQybXbh6GqchmA3hkU6iiNrmCfBkYIcp0

S2 E2 · Wed, February 15, 2023

The Process: Why is A.I. So Secretive?

Film maker Morgan Quaintance is interested in what AI can teach us about being human. For his commission for our digital platform Channel, he set out to explore divergent cultural attitudes to AI between the UK and Japan. But when he started putting out requests for interviews, he was met with a wall of silence.  Public institutions, AI developers, robotics companies and schools all seemed unwilling to reply and the film couldn't be made. Frustrated about the stonewalling he'd experienced, he started to think more about the process and what this says about the development of AI. Why was there such overwhelming silence from companies developing this technology? What does this say about some of the moral questions that go into its formation?  Morgan is joined by The Guardian’s tech journalist Alex Hern and AI artist Nouf Aljowaysir to try to find out.   Morgan Quaintance is a London-based artist and writer. His moving image work has been shown and exhibited widely at festivals and institutions including: MOMA, New York; Mcevoy Foundaton for the Arts, San Francisco; Konsthall C, Sweden; David Dale, Glasgow; European Media Art Festival, Germany; Alchemy Film and Arts Festival, Scotland. Over the past ten years, his critically incisive writings on contemporary art, aesthetics and their socio-political contexts, have featured in publications including Art Monthly, the Wire, and the Guardian, and helped shape the landscape of discourse and debate in the UK.   The Process The creative process is inspired by worlds beyond itself.  The Somerset House podcast series 'The Process' brings those worlds together, platforming the big conversations which go on to inspire new work.   Drawing on our creative community on site and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows one artist as they explore an idea from their practice to see where it ends up.  We hear their journey from the studio on, as they invite other thinkers to discuss an idea that has come out of a work in progress and help shape where it might go next.   Producer: Alannah Chance   Series Presenter: Laurent John   Theme music: Ka Baird   Additional music: Harry Murdoch    Mastered by: Nick Ryan   Produced as part of the Creators Programme 2022   Supported by The Rothschild Foundation 

Wed, February 01, 2023

The Process: Living with Ghosts

Elizabeth Bernholtz, aka Gazelle Twin , has had paranormal experiences since her early childhood. Ever since she’s been both terrified and thrilled by the occult, gripped by stories of poltergeist possession and famous hauntings. Fresh off the back of her commission for The Horror Show at Somerset House, Gazelle Twin is getting back into the writing process for her next album which explores her long held fascination with ghosts.  We join her as she considers what it would mean to take these stories seriously and to harness her fear as a creative fuel. She talks to artist Mark Leckey , also inspired by the supernatural, about how he uses samples as a form of haunting and how art can be a form of self-exorcism.  Ghost hunter Innes Smith helps unpack the hauntings she experienced in her childhood home. The Process The creative process is inspired by worlds beyond itself.  The Somerset House podcast series 'The Process' brings those worlds together, platforming the big conversations which go on to inspire new work.   Drawing on our creative community on site and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows one artist as they explore an idea from their practice to see where it ends up.  We hear their journey from the studio on, as they invite other thinkers to discuss an idea that has come out of a work in progress and help shape where it might go next.   Producer: Alannah Chance  Series Presenter: Laurent John  Theme music: Ka Baird  Mastered by: Nick Ryan  Produced as part of the Creators Programme 2022  Supported by The Rothschild Foundation 

Trailer · Fri, January 27, 2023

Trailer: The Process Series 2

The creative process is inspired by worlds beyond itself.  The Somerset House podcast series 'The Process' brings those worlds together, platforming the big conversations which go on to inspire new work.   Drawing on our creative community on site and from the exhibition programme, each episode follows one artist as they explore an idea from their practice to see where it ends up.  We hear their journey from the studio on, as they invite other thinkers to discuss an idea that has come out of a work in progress and help shape where it might go next.   In this second series we take a turn for the unexplained, starting with a ghost story from musician Gazelle Twin , who explores how art can be a form of exorcism with artist Mark Leckey . Film maker Morgan Quaintance reflects a recent film that couldn't be made and examines the culture of secrecy in AI. Artist Leila Dear asks how geometry can help us communicate with life on other planets and Somerset House Studios resident Libby Heaney explores quantum entanglement, through the prism of slime and deep listening.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Mastered by: Nick Ryan Produced as part of the Creators Programme 2022 Supported by The Rothschild Foundation

S1 E2 · Wed, September 07, 2022

Echoic Archive: Creative Coding & Archive In The Metaverse

Questions and complications of the metaverse are broken down by artist collective Keiken, whose cross-dimensional practice merges the physical with the digital by building online worlds and augmented realities. Here they meet with Jazmin Morris, a creative computing artist and educator based in London whose own practice and research explore representation and inclusivity within technology.

S1 E4 · Wed, September 07, 2022

Echoic Archive: Dark Fecundity + Archiving For The Distant Future

Weyland hops on an audio space adventure to Andromeda with Somerset House Studios artist and writer Sonya Dyer to explore how we can construct the future based on the archive we leave behind. Dyer is currently collaborating with Dr. Jeff Grube as part of a funded research and development scheme connecting academics from King's College London and residents of Somerset House Studios.

S1 E3 · Wed, September 07, 2022

Echoic Archive: Collected Materials, Mythology and Archiving for Climate Change

Weyland sits down with Filipino artist Leeroy New who was commissioned to create the Earth Day 2022 sculpture in Somerset House’s courtyard. The pair discuss creating with collected materials, indigenous mythology, and archiving in the face of the climate emergency. We also learn how a Yoruba deity named Ogun influenced the creation of the only acoustic musical instrument created in the 20th century …steelpan

S1 E1 · Wed, September 07, 2022

Echoic Archive: African Filmmakers in The Diaspora Underground

Many African Filmmakers, both on the continent and in the diaspora, have been using the medium to connect and communicate across time and space. Having grown up both in Nigeria and the west, Akinola Davies Jr attempts to bridge the gap between traditional and millennial Black communities in both locations. Award-winning filmmaker and author of Love for Liberation: African Independence, Black Power, and a Diaspora Underground Dr. Robin J. Hayes joins in for a discussion of their personal journeys as filmmakers.

Trailer · Wed, September 07, 2022

S1: Trailer: Welcome to the Echoic Archive

Wed, March 23, 2022

The Process: Healing through skating

Roller skating is having a moment.  Instagram videos of roller skaters doing synchronised dances went viral over lockdown and inspired a new generation to get on four wheels. Somerset House Studios artist Tyreis Holder was one of them. She discovered skating during lockdown and in her words, it saved her life.  In this episode of the Process, Tyreis joins the dots between her art practice, poetry and her love of skating, tracing its history within the black community in London. She heads out to Hyde Park to talk to artist and coach Marilyn Fontaine, part of an older generation of black skaters in London who shares how skating has been transformative in her life and was integral to the development of underground music and fashion through the 80s. In a candid and personal conversation, Tyreis and Marilyn share how skating has helped them navigate intergenerational trauma and gain a sense of freedom, inspiring Tyreis to invite her own family to get on four wheels to begin a process of healing. Additional music in this episode is by Dialgo, D.A.H Trump and Siddhartha Corsus  - THE PROCESS A new Somerset House Podcast series  We’re used to experiencing the work of an artist in its final form - in the gallery, on the stage, or mixed on an album. But what has been the journey to get there? Somerset House is home to a community of over 100 artists and makers. (And by extension,  it is often the home for the artistic process too), with much of the work we present being conceived and made in the building, from start to finish.  This podcast goes behind the scenes on that process with the artists themselves. Each episode explores one big idea emerging from a work in progress and follows the thread, from the artists’ initial inspiration, through the cross section of thinkers who helped them get there, to hear the form it might take next.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Exec Producer: Eleanor Scott Theme music is by Ka Baird Additional music by Harry Murdoch Mastered by: Nick Ryan Produced as part of the Creators-in-Residence Programme 2021 Supported by The Rothschild Foundation

S1 E5 · Wed, March 16, 2022

The Process: Reclaiming the Commons

Col Self grew up as a child playing on the sites of the new age traveller community in the 1990s. After the passing of the criminal justice bill and the crackdown on the travelling community that came with it, it started to become clear to her what a unique moment in British history she had lived through. Now, as a resident artist at Somerset House Studios, her practice continues to probe the boundaries of private and public space, searching for liminal domains which exist outside the grasp of late stage capitalism. But are there any common spaces left in the UK where we are truly outside of private ownership? Col sits down with writer and activist Nick Hayes to talk about the power of trespass, the last of the commons and why he thinks the river could be the ultimate liminal space. Additional music in this episode is by Pamela Z, the Spore collective, Frances Young and 011668 - The Process  A new Somerset House Podcast series  We’re used to experiencing the work of an artist in its final form - in the gallery, on the stage, or mixed on an album. But what has been the journey to get there? Somerset House is home to a community of over 100 artists and makers. (And by extension,  it is often the home for the artistic process too), with much of the work we present being conceived and made in the building, from start to finish.  This podcast goes behind the scenes on that process with the artists themselves. Each episode explores one big idea emerging from a work in progress and follows the thread, from the artists’ initial inspiration, through the cross section of thinkers who helped them get there, to hear the form it might take next.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Exec Producer: Eleanor Scott Theme music: Ka Baird Additional Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mastered by: Nick Ryan Produced as part of the Creators-in-Residence Programme 2021 Supported by The Rothschild Foundation

Wed, March 09, 2022

The Process: Taking Fun Seriously

Somerset House Studios resident Anna Meredith is a composer who takes writing playful music seriously. But her process is anything but reckless.  Over the summer she set herself a challenge, to write a series of compositions for bumper cars which would be installed in the courtyard of Somerset House for Dodge .  Tunes would be triggered when the bumper cars bumped. But this posed some tricky questions. How can you control the structure of the composition when the audience is in the driving seat? Who is the composer here, Anna or the drivers? Anna sits down with her studio neighbour Nick Ryan , who has been working at the forefront of interactive music, to hear about where this genre might be headed before talking to games designer Nick Moran to hear how to organise fun.  Additional music in this episode is by Anna Meredith and Emahoy Tsegué-maryam Guèbrou. - The Process  A new Somerset House Podcast series  We’re used to experiencing the work of an artist in its final form - in the gallery, on the stage, or mixed on an album. But what has been the journey to get there? Somerset House is home to a community of over 100 artists and makers. (And by extension,  it is often the home for the artistic process too), with much of the work we present being conceived and made in the building, from start to finish.  This podcast goes behind the scenes on that process with the artists themselves. Each episode explores one big idea emerging from a work in progress and follows the thread, from the artists’ initial inspiration, through the cross section of thinkers who helped them get there, to hear the form it might take next.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Exec Producer: Eleanor Scott Theme music: Ka Baird Additional Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mastered by: Nick Ryan Produced as part of the Creators-in-Residence Programme 2021 Supported by The Rothschild Foundation

Wed, March 02, 2022

The Process: Language of Resistance

‘How do you imagine yourself as anything other than what you are told you are?’   Shiraz Bayjoo is a Mauritian artist living in London whose practice explores how language and identity in the Indian Ocean have been shaped by the legacy of European colonialism in the region. In a commission for We Are History, an exhibition at Somerset House, Shiraz explored different perspectives on the plantation system, and it’s structures of extraction and subjugation.  The We Are History exhibition traced the complex interrelations between today’s climate crisis and the legacies of colonialism. We joined Shiraz in his studio at the stage where he was putting the finishing touches to the installation, which brings together ceramics, textiles, sculpture and archive photos to re-dignify the people affected by the legacies of empire. He is joined by activist and theorist Françoise Verges , born in La Reunion, to discuss strategies of survival and resistance in the region. Additional music in this episode is by Alain Peters, Menwar and Roger George. We Are History is sponsored by Morgan Stanley - The Process  A new Somerset House Podcast series  We’re used to experiencing the work of an artist in its final form - in the gallery, on the stage, or mixed on an album. But what has been the journey to get there? Somerset House is home to a community of over 100 artists and makers. (And by extension,  it is often the home for the artistic process too), with much of the work we present being conceived and made in the building, from start to finish.  This podcast goes behind the scenes on that process with the artists themselves. Each episode explores one big idea emerging from a work in progress and follows the thread, from the artists’ initial inspiration, through the cross section of thinkers who helped them get there, to hear the form it might take next.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Exec Producer: Eleanor Scott Theme music: Ka Baird Additional Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mastered by: Nick Ryan Produced as part of the Creators-in-Residence Programme 2021 Supported by The Rothschild Foundation

Wed, February 23, 2022

The Process: What is Financial Astrology?

What is Financial Astrology?  Somerset House Studios artist Gary Zhexi Zhang is interested in exploring the chimeric edges of global systems.  Recently his research has taken him into the world of finance, where he’s been drawn to the sorts of speculative ways of thinking we might normally associate with the occult. Enter Financial Astrology, a way of forecasting the markets based on the positions of the cosmos.  In this episode of The Process, Gary goes down the rabbit hole to try to understand this area and why cryptocurrency in particular is so obsessed with the stars. He hears about some seismic events on the horizon from Christeen Skinner, a financial astrologist who has been working in the City of London for over 20 years and talks to social anthropologist and former equity fund manager, Philip Grant about how ideas of magic and finance overlap.  - The Process  A new Somerset House Podcast series  We’re used to experiencing the work of an artist in its final form - in the gallery, on the stage, or mixed on an album. But what has been the journey to get there? Somerset House is home to a community of over 100 artists and makers. (And by extension,  it is often the home for the artistic process too), with much of the work we present being conceived and made in the building, from start to finish.  This podcast goes behind the scenes on that process with the artists themselves. Each episode explores one big idea emerging from a work in progress and follows the thread, from the artists’ initial inspiration, through the cross section of thinkers who helped them get there, to hear the form it might take next.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Exec Producer: Eleanor Scott Theme music: Ka Baird Additional Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mastered by: Nick Ryan Produced as part of the Creators-in-Residence Programme 2021 Supported by The Rothschild Foundation

Wed, February 16, 2022

The Process: Breaking The Rules

Breaking the Rules featuring Andy Holden & Mark McGowan ‘The power of performance lies in it not really being there’ Andy Holden grew up with one foot in Bedford and one foot in Beano-town, the fictional town from the Beano full of semi-detached houses and fractious families.  As the curator of the exhibition Beano: The Art of Breaking the Rules at Somerset House, Andy became immersed in the comic’s world of childlike anarchy and rebellion. Now, as he shakes off his cartoon limbs and returns to being fully human, he wonders what can he take from the spirit of the Beano into his next endeavour?  How can you keep bending the rules while avoiding being predictable? Is performance art the most effective way of inspiring change? Andy heads out to talk to  performance artist Mark McGowan , aka the artist taxi driver, about performance, politics and the power of persona, all from the back of a black cab. - The Process  A new Somerset House Podcast series  We’re used to experiencing the work of an artist in its final form - in the gallery, on the stage, or mixed on an album. But what has been the journey to get there? Somerset House is home to a community of over 100 artists and makers. (And by extension,  it is often the home for the artistic process too), with much of the work we present being conceived and made in the building, from start to finish.  This podcast goes behind the scenes on that process with the artists themselves. Each episode explores one big idea emerging from a work in progress and follows the thread, from the artists’ initial inspiration, through the cross section of thinkers who helped them get there, to hear the form it might take next.  Producer: Alannah Chance Series Presenter: Laurent John Exec Producer: Eleanor Scott Theme Music: Ka Baird Additional Music: Equiknoxx and Xylo-Ziko  Additional Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mastered by: Nick Ryan Produced as part of the Creators-in-Residence Programme 2021 Supported by The Rothschild Foundation

Trailer · Tue, January 25, 2022

Trailer - The Process | Somerset House Podcast

A brand new six-part podcast series, The Process, takes listeners behind the scenes with some of today’s most exciting creatives on their journey to create new works. Released weekly from 16 February 2022. We’re used to experiencing the work of an artist in its final form - in the gallery, on the stage, or mixed on an album. But what has been the journey to get there? Somerset House is home to a community of over 70 artists and makers. (And by extension,  it is often the home for the artistic process too), with much of the work we present being conceived and made in the building, from start to finish.  This podcast goes behind the scenes on that process with the artists themselves. Each episode explores one big idea emerging from a work in progress and follows the thread, from the artists’ initial inspiration, through the cross section of thinkers who helped them get there, to hear the form it might take next.  Curator Andy Holden and performance artist Mark McGowan talk politics and performance from the back of a taxi, artist and writer Gary Zhexi Zhang delves into the world of financial astrology, and La Réunion born activist Françoise Verges and Mauritian artist Shiraz Bayjoo discuss survival and resistance in relation to colonialism in the Indian Ocean region.  The Process is produced by Alannah Chance as part of the Creators in Residence Programme, supported by The Rothschild Foundation.  

Sat, July 04, 2020

Trailer | Coping Mechanisms

Speaking to familiar faces, including Carol Morley , Jarvis Cocker , Nabihah Iqbal , Noel Fielding and Tim Burgess , the series reflects on how guest have instigated new activities online, open to all, to stay creative in lockdown. Created and hosted by award-winning artists and film makers Iain Forsyth  and Jane Pollard , this series is a joyful listen for anyone who has (re)discovered their creative side in lockdown.

S1 E4 · Fri, July 03, 2020

The Avoidance of Boredom | Coping Mechanisms

In the final episode Iain and Jane talk to the stand-up comedian and radio broadcaster Robin Ince about the Stay at Home Festival and musician, producer and DJ Nabihah Iqbal about her time as Lockdown Herbalist in Pakistan, interrogating what it is that drives people to channel their creative energies and help us feel a little less isolated. We also welcome back Jarvis Cocker who may well send you off to sleep with his Bedtime Stories.    Exploring what we can learn from the people behind these ventures, Iain and Jane ask just what is that we gain from an online hang out or drop in. Credits Coping Mechanisms is a Somerset House podcast.  Created by Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard  Produced by Eleanor Scott & Daniel Breuer Music by Bernholtz.   Thank you to all the artists who have contributed to the series.

S1 E3 · Thu, July 02, 2020

Connected in Time | Coping Mechanisms

Exploring whether we can really have a collective experience online, our hosts meet with Carol Morley and Tim Burgess . Catch up with the brilliant writer and director Carol Morley, whose films include Dreams of a Life and The Falling. Carol has been hosting “Friday Film Club” – each week she chooses a readily available, free-to-watch film. People then watch at the same time and meet up on Twitter to discuss it afterwards. Similarly, The Charlatans frontman, musician, writer, DJ and record label owner, Tim Burgess launched an extensive series of “Tim’s Twitter Listening Parties”, where fans could come together, with Tim and members of the band, to ask questions and share memories. Credits Coping Mechanisms is a Somerset House podcast Created by Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard  Produced by Eleanor Scott & Daniel Breuer Music by Bernholz.   Thank you to all the artists who have contributed to the series

S1 E2 · Wed, July 01, 2020

Life Drawing's A Killer | Coping Mechanisms

Why is it so many of us paint, draw or in some way turn to creativity in tough times? When we’re told to stay at home, and required to hold our family and friends literally at arm’s length why do we look to the arts to make things better?   The comedian Noel Fielding, well-known for his role as one half of The Mighty Boosh, is a comedian, writer, actor, artist, musician and now the presenter of a much-loved TV show about baking. Sue Tilley is an artist. She’s best known as the subject of Lucian Freud’s painting Benefits Supervisor Sleeping and her book written about her close friend Leigh Bowery: The Life and Times of an Icon .   Credits Coping Mechanisms is a Somerset House podcast Created by Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard  Produced by Eleanor Scott & Daniel Breuer Music by Bernholtz.   Thank you to all the artists who have contributed to the series

S1 E1 · Tue, June 30, 2020

Make Your Own Entertainment | Coping Mechanisms

How do we cope when our world is unexpectedly turned upside down?  When lockdown was imposed on the UK, almost all of Iain & Jane's projects came to a grinding halt. With unexpected time on their hands, they discussed starting an online project… but then, like many of us, did nothing else about it.     Fortunately, some did bother, and these online lockdown projects have helped many of us feel a little less isolated. For some, especially performers, it has been about finding ways to carry on regardless. With a new album and tour postponed because of the pandemic, Jarvis Cocker begun hosting a Domestic Disco on Instagram. Here, he discusses spinning records from his living room and inviting viewers to join him for a socially-distanced dance.    For others, the priority has been keeping platforms open and ensuring voices are still heard. Alain ‘Fusion’ Clapham is the founder of Black Man’s Time . At the start of lockdown he was about to launch a new live project, Black Love Stories , an immersive mix of spoken word, art, film and conversation. Determined to create something positive out of the moment, Black Love Stories was swiftly reassembled online, and now airs every Friday night on Instagram Live.    These illuminating and amusing conversations traverse the collective importance of such initiatives; and why we turn to the arts in time of crisis; as well as looking closer at the individuals behind these ventures and learning more about their creative drive.    Coping Mechanisms is a Somerset House podcast.  Created by Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard  Produced by Eleanor Scott & Daniel Breuer Music by Bernholtz.   Thank you to all the artists who have contributed to the series.     

S7 E5 · Tue, February 04, 2020

Peel Back The Curtain | 24/7

Slipping between the real and the imaginary. Filmmaker Liam Young uncovers the concept behind his film Renderlands, which portrays a global network of 24/7 workers generating popular Western culture from films to video games.   Artists explore the non-stop nature of modern life. Liam Young’s short fiction film Renderlands is set in the sphere of videogame companies and render farms in India highlighting a global network where outsourced workers operate 24/7. In Western design studios, wireframed structures are sketched out for imaginary cities and landscapes, which are then rendered by anonymous workforces in other countries into the high-precision digital architectures of video games and films. Renderlands is a utopia that exists in the screen alone – a virtual city that stretches from Los Angeles to Bangalore, constructed from the remnants of demolished landmarks, alien invasions, and outsourced dreams.   Featuring contributions from exhibition curator Sarah Cook and Jonathan Reekie, co-curator of 24/7 and Director of Somerset House.    The exhibition 24/7 - A Wake Up Call For Our Non-Stop World at Somerset House takes visitors on a multi-sensory journey from the cold light of the moon to the fading warmth of sunset through five themed zones and contains over 50 multi-disciplinary works that will provoke and entertain. The exhibition runs at Somerset House until 23 February 2020.   Producer: Eleanor Scott Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mixed by Nick Ryan Featuring excerpts from Renderlands by Liam Young. 

S7 E4 · Tue, January 21, 2020

Sleep Well, Sweet Dreams | 24/7

How did you sleep last night? Artists Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard , and writer Stuart Evers paint a possible future for our sleep and dreams in a 24/7 world. Artists explore the non-stop nature of modern life. Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard discuss their work Somnoproxy, a futuristic bedtime story with writer Stuart Evers, which features as part of the exhibition 24/7 . This immersive audio installation centres on the fictional story of someone who sleeps on behalf of wealthy executives, too busy to sleep themselves. It’s a state-of-the-art sonic escape from reality, complete with a dream-machine designed by Brion Gysin, ‘viewed’ with the eyes closed. The pulsating light can produce Hypnagogia, the experience of the transitional state from wakefulness to sleep. ‘Sleep coincides with the metabolizing of what is ingested by day: drugs, alcohol, all the detritus from interfacing with illuminated screens; but also the flood of anxieties, fears, doubts, longings, imaginings of failure or the big score.’ — Jonathan Crary   Featuring contributions from exhibition curator Sarah Cook and Jonathan Reekie , co-curator of 24/7 and Director of Somerset House.  The exhibition 24/7 - A Wake Up Call For Our Non-Stop World at Somerset House takes visitors on a multi-sensory journey from the cold light of the moon to the fading warmth of sunset through five themed zones and contains over 50 multi-disciplinary works that will provoke and entertain. The exhibition runs at Somerset House until 23 February 2020. Producer: Eleanor Scott Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mixed by Nick Ryan Featuring excerpts from Somnoproxy, an audio installation by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard. Story by Stuart Evers. Read by Enzo Cilenti and Kate Ashfield. Originally commissioned by Moog Sound Lab UK with support from the Adonyeva Foundation.

S7 E3 · Thu, January 16, 2020

Dopamine Detox & Resisting Surveillance | 24/7

How many times have you looked at your phone today? Artist Mat Collishaw draws parallels between behavioural experiments on birds and the highly addictive nature of social media. And Artist Hasan Elahi explains how a false investigation led to a 15 years project, sharing his personal data and images with the FBI and public.  Artists explore the non-stop nature of modern life. Mat Collishaw ’s work The Machine Zone was inspired by the behavioural experiments of American psychologist B.F. Skinner (1904 – 1990) whose work is widely referenced in relation to the algorithms which drive interactions on social media. Using birds and other small mammals, Skinner’s ‘operant conditioning chamber’ investigated the subconscious primal side of the brain involved in motivated behaviours. He demonstrated that random rewards create a constant uncertainty that encourages a behavioural loop. Collishaw worked with animatronics designer Adam Keenan to create these mechanised pigeons exhibiting obsessive repetitive behaviour.  Skinner’s ghost has persisted into the modern day, a quiet spectre among our statuses, likes, comments, and shares. Today an average user spends 1/7th of their waking lives on social platforms, and we owe some of this apparent addiction to Skinner’s research. His work followed on from philosopher Jeremy Bentham’s research into human motivation (‘the utilitarian self’ as pleasure seeking and pain avoiding) as demonstrated in Bentham’s ‘Table of the Springs of Action’.  Over the last fifteen years Hasan Elahi has generated online systems to share personal data and photographic evidence of his whereabouts at all times with the FBI, as a result of their mistakenly putting him on a no-fly list after the events of 9–11. In his work, Scorpion W2 , 2019 he mines this ongoing personal database to create large immersive collages picturing all the meals he’s eaten, beds he’s slept in and airports he’s flown to. The overall pattern is the current operational camouflage pattern of the American military – standardized across all divisions, units and countries in 2019 – but Elahi has changed the colours to those that feature in the test pattern shown during a U.S. television emergency broadcast. Featuring contributions from exhibition curator Sarah Cook and Jonathan Reekie , co-curator of 24/7 and Director of Somerset House.  The exhibition 24/7 - A Wake Up Call For Our Non-Stop World at Somerset House takes visitors on a multi-sensory journey from the cold light of the moon to the fading warmth of sunset through five themed zones and contains over 50 multi-d

S7 E2 · Mon, January 06, 2020

Artificial Birdsong and a Virtual Choir | 24/7

Refresh, reflect, reset... Artist Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg invites you to sit and listen to the dawn chorus, questioning how the city may sound without birds. Through the power of humming Melissa Mongiat, co-founder of Daily Tous Les Jours, highlights a metaphysical connection through music.  Light and sound pollution from our 24-hour urban lifestyle affects birds, which are singing earlier, louder, for longer, or at a higher pitch to communicate. Some species are better at adapting to survive. Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg ’s installation in 24/7, Machine Auguries questions how the city might sound with changing, homogenising, or diminishing bird populations. Solos of chiffchaffs, great tits, redstarts, robins, thrushes, and entire dawn choruses were used to ‘train’ two neural networks – a Generative Adversarial Network, or GAN – pitted against each other to sing. Reflecting how birds develop their song from each other, a call and response spatialises the evolution of a new language, as samples of each stage (or epoch) in the GAN’s training reveals the artificial birds’ increasing realism.  Melissa Mongiat , co-founder of Daily Tous Les Jours presents I Heard There Was a Secret Chord , a participatory humming channel that reveals an invisible connection uniting those people around the world listening to Leonard Cohen’s song Hallelujah . Real time user data representing the number of these listeners is transformed into a virtual choir – each online listener represented by a humming voice in the space. These sounds are transformed into low frequency vibrations as you start humming along, allowing you to feel a collective resonance. The work is both a scientific and a spiritual experiment, highlighting the metaphysical connection between people on a common wavelength.  Featuring contributions from exhibition curator Sarah Cook and Jonathan Reekie , co-curator of 24/7 and Director of Somerset House.  The exhibition 24/7 - A Wake Up Call For Our Non-Stop World at Somerset House takes visitors on a multi-sensory journey from the cold light of the moon to the fading warmth of sunset through five themed zones and contains over 50 multi-disciplinary works that will provoke and entertain. The exhibition runs at Somerset House until 23 February 2020 Producer: Eleanor Scott Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mixed by Nick Ryan Machine Auguries Credits Multi-channel sound installation  Machine Learning:

S7 E1 · Fri, December 20, 2019

More, More, More | 24/7

Artist Benjamin Grosser explores the notion of ‘more’ in a 24/7 world. The 24/7 podcast invites artists to explore the non-stop nature of modern life.  Extracted from every video appearance Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg made between 2004 and 2018, Benjamin Grosser edited together the relative measures that crop up regularly in Zuckerberg’s speeches and interviews: ‘more’, ‘grow’, ‘50%’, ‘a million’, repeated ad nauseum. Grosser’s projects aim to draw attention to Facebook’s accumulative mindset, revealing the inherent design of social media platforms which keep you addicted through showing you how many likes, interactions, and comments you have. As with Instagram, Facebook is also now considering hiding the ‘like count’ as research has shown it creates anxiety in users if their friends’ posts get more likes than their own. Featuring contributions from exhibition curator Sarah Cook and Jonathan Reekie , co-curator of 24/7 and Director of Somerset House.  The exhibition 24/7 - A Wake Up Call For Our Non-Stop World at Somerset House takes visitors on a multi-sensory journey from the cold light of the moon to the fading warmth of sunset through five themed zones and contains over 50 multi-disciplinary works that will provoke and entertain.  With every moment seemingly an opportunity to connect and work, unrelenting pressure to produce and consume, sleep itself monitored and commodified, how we cope is one of the most urgent contemporary issues affecting us all. Inspired by Jonathan Crary ’s book of the same name, 24/7 holds up a mirror to our always-on culture and invites you to step outside of your day-to-day routine to engage, reflect and reset. The exhibition runs at Somerset House until 23 February 2020 Producer: Eleanor Scott Sound Design: Harry Murdoch Mixed by Nick Ryan

S6 E5 · Tue, June 11, 2019

Mothership | Get Up, Stand Up Now

Calling planet earth! Artist Yinka Shonibare CBE , acclaimed saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings , fashion designer Mowalola Ogunlesi , and Get Up, Stand Up Now curator Zak Ové explore themes around Black futures and afro-futurism. Presented by spoken word artist Joshua Idehen. Music by Shabaka Hutchings and GAIKA , excerpts from Sun Ra Arkestra BBC Radio 3 session courtesy of Somethin' Else and BBC Radio 3. Producer: Mae-Li Evans The series was produced by Reduced Listening and Somerset House Yinka Shonibare CBE Yinka Shonibare’s work explores issues of race and class through painting, sculpture, photography and film. Having described himself as a ‘post-colonial’ hybrid, Shonibare questions the meaning of cultural and national definitions. His trademark material is the brightly coloured ‘African’ batik fabric he buys at Brixton Market. The fabric was inspired by Indonesian design, mass-produced by the Dutch and eventually sold in British colonies in West Africa. In the 1960s, the material became a new sign of African identity and independence. Shabaka Hutchings  constantly evaluates his music’s relationship to Caribbean and jazz traditions, and sees his role as pushing the boundaries of both. His trajectory started early when he moved to Barbados at the age of six, began studying classical clarinet aged nine, and graduated to tenor saxophone, which has been a regular part of his performances since his return to the UK aged 16. Hutchings has three primary projects – Shabaka and the Ancestors, Sons of Kemet and The Comet is Coming. Between them, Hutchings has gathered a substantial number of awards and nominations, including winning the 2013 MOBO Jazz Act of the Year. Mowalola Ogunlesi founded the menswear brand Mowalola in 2017 to celebrate the African male and culture, sexuality and desire. He was awarded Best New Designer at the 2018 Milan Fashion Film Festival. Mowalola had its London Fashion Week debut in January 2019 with Fashion East and their work has been featured in publications such as Vogue UK, Vogue US, i-D, Dazed & Confused, Surface Magazine, SHOWstudio and W Magazine. GET UP, STAND UP NOW GENERATIONS OF BLACK CREATIVE PIONEERS 12 Jun – 15 Sep 2019 A major new exhibition celebrating the past 50 years of Black creativity in Britain and beyond. Beginning with the radical Black filmmaker Horace Ové and his dynamic circle of Windrush generation creative peers and extending to today’s brilliant young Black talent globally, a group of around 100 interdisciplinary artists will showcas

S6 E4 · Tue, June 11, 2019

Imaginary Landscapes | Get Up, Stand Up Now

#4 Imaginary Landscapes What is the place of Black diasporic art in Britain today? How do artists use imaginary landscapes to look to the future, break ground and envisage a world beyond? Can you imagine this alternative future? Artist Barby Asante in conversation with curator Paul Goodwin; artist, activist and collector of diasporic art CCH Pounder, alongside Get Up, Stand Up Now curator Zak Ové reflect, 50 years on from Baldwin’s Nigger (Horace Ové, 1969) in which African-American writer James Baldwin discussed Black experience and identity in Britain and America. Presented by spoken word artist Joshua Idehen with music by GAIKA. Featuring excerpts from Baldwin's Nigger, 1969 by Horace Ové, and an extract reading from Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God. Producer: Femi Oriogun-Williams The series was produced by Reduced Listening and Somerset House Barby Asante Barby Asante is an artist, curator and researcher. Her work is concerned with the politics of place and the histories and legacies of colonialism, producing projects that are collaborative and performative to stimulate dialogue on what is unheard or missing from cultural archives. Through creating social rituals and re-enactments she interrogates dominant narratives to think about migration, safe spaces in hostile cities and the overlooked everyday contributions of people of colour to our social, political and cultural understandings. Paul Goodwin Working as a curator at Tate Britain from 2008 to 2012 Goodwin directed the pioneering Cross Cultural Programme that explored questions of migration and globalisation in contemporary British art through a programme of international conferences, workshops, talks and live art events. His curatorial projects include a number of internationally significant exhibitions including: Migrations: Journeys Into British Art, Tate Britain 2012; Thin Black Line(s), Tate Britain, 2011; Coming Ashore, 2011, Berardo Collection Museum in Lisbon, Portugal; Afro Modern: Journeys Through the Black Atlantic (consultant curator), Tate Liverpool, 2010; Underconstruction, Hospital Julius De Matos, Lisbon, Portugal, 2009. In 2013 he curated Charlie Phillips: The Urban Eye at New Art Exchange, Nottingham which was long-listed for the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2014. CCH Pounder CCH Pounder’s diasporic collection includes approximately 500 works of art. It aims to capture the temperament of the times through which she has lived. With a career spanning over 40 years, the actress was first celebrated for her strong female roles in television shows such as ER, The Shield and Sons of Anarchy, as well as films including Avatar, Orphan</e

S6 E3 · Tue, June 11, 2019

Masquerade | Get Up, Stand Up Now

#3 Masquerade Artists Zoe Bedeaux and Rhea Storr , writer Margaret Busby and Get Up, Stand Up Now curator Zak Ové explore the concept of masquerade in Black diasporic creativity, reflecting upon the history of Trinidad carnival documented in Horace Ové’s 1973 documentary, King Carnival . Music by Gaika. Excerpts from A Protest, A Celebration, A Mixed Message by Rhea Storr. Zoe Bedeaux Multi-disciplinary artist Zoe Bedeaux studied art and design at Harrow School of Art before working as a styling assistant to famous punk designer Judy Blame. Her work encompasses style curation, art direction, writing, photography, print-making, poetry, audio readings and cultural commentary. She has been featured as model, muse and contributing editor in publications and various online platforms such as Nowness , Another , SHOWstudio , The Face , i-D , Self-Service , 032C , Vogue and Vestoj . Rhea Storr Rhea Storr’s practice is concerned with producing images which refute stereotypes of Black identity. Working on 16mm film, but also making peripheral drawings, photographs and scores, she questions how a body performs and how other bodies react to it. Of Bahamian and English heritage, her interests centre around the inherent tensions in being between two cultures where oversimplified statements about racial identity have no meaning. Carnival is often the subject of her work, and her approach affirms Caribbean culture while subverting traditional power structures.  Margaret Busby OBE, Hon. FRSL was born in Ghana and educated in the UK. Graduating from London University, she became Britain’s youngest and first Black woman publisher when she co-founded Allison & Busby in 1967, where she was editorial director for 20 years. Subsequently pursuing a career as editor, broadcaster and critic, she has contributed to many publications, written drama for radio and the stage, served as a judge for prestigious literary competitions, and campaigned for diversity in publishing since the 1980s. She compiled the ground-breaking international anthology Daughters of Africa (1992), and 2019’s follow-up, New Daughters of Africa (Myriad).  Zak Ové Zak Ové shared his father’s passion for film and photography as he assisted him on film sets from a young age and eventually studied film at St. Martins School of Art. Influenced by Trinidad’s steel pan, Zak became an accomplished percussionist; music and art remained the backbone of his work when he moved to New York, as a music video director, shooting classic videos of that time. E

S6 E2 · Tue, June 11, 2019

Dream to Change the World | Get Up, Stand Up Now

#2 Dream to Change the World How do we imagine a better future? How do we imagine equality and how do we get there? Horace Ové CBE is internationally renowned as one of the leading Black independent filmmakers to emerge in Britain since the post-war period. His 1976 film Pressure is cited in the Guinness Book of Records as the first feature-length film made by a Black British director. Get Up, Stand Up Now curator Zak Ové and Gaylene Gould, British Film Institute (Head of Cinema & Events) are in conversation exploring Pressure , its production and legacy. Artist Sonia Boyce OBE RA discusses her work as an artist and activist starting in the 1980’s with the Black Arts Movement. Spoken word artist Joshua Idehen creatively responds to the themes of activism, change and hope. Zak Ové Zak Ové shared his father’s passion for film and photography as he assisted him on films sets from a young age and eventually studied Film at St. Martins School of Art, London. Influenced by Trinidad’s steel pan, Zak became an accomplished percussionist; music and art remained the backbone of his work when he moved to New York, as a Music Video Director, shooting classic videos of that time. Extending his work into advertising Zak directed a range of campaigns and worked with Lee Scratch Perry, whose freedom of creativity left its mark on Zak. Ultimately disillusioned with the commercial world Zak returned to Trinidad to document Carnival and its old-time masquerade which subsequently inspired him to create sculptural artworks. Today Zak’s multi-disciplinary practice focuses on sculpture but still includes film and photography. His work is informed in part through the history and lore carried through the African diaspora to the Caribbean, Britain and beyond, with particular focus on the traditions of masking and masquerade. His artworks explore interplay between old world mythology and what he posits as ‘potential futures’. Using modern materials, and ‘a sound clash of colour’, he blurs the edges between reality and possibility, flesh and spirit.  Sonia Boyce OBE RA  Sonia Boyce OBE RA is a British African-Caribbean artist who gained prominence with Black Women Artists, as part of the Black British cultural renaissance of the 1980s. Her earlier works examined the issues of race and gender in the media and in daily life through large pastel drawings and photographic collages. Her work has since shifted to include a range of media, from prints and film to drawings, sound, installation and photographs.  Boyce has been working closely with other artists since 1990, which often involves improvisation and spontaneous performative actions

S6 E1 · Tue, June 11, 2019

Motherland | Get Up, Stand Up Now

#1 Motherland Legendary musician Dennis Bovell, writer Margaret Busby, and photographer Normski come together with Get Up, Stand Up Now exhibition curator Zak Ové and spoken word artist Joshua Idehen to explore the notion of ‘motherland.’  Original music by Dennis Bovell and Gaika, with selected tracks from Trojan Records. Stalag 17 - King Tubby and the Technique Allstars (Trojan Records) After Tonight - Matumbi (Trojan Records) The Shadow of Your Smile - Tommy McCook and the Super Sonics (Trojan Records) Excerpt from Andrea Levy's Small Island    Producer: Femi Oriogun-Williams The series was produced by Reduced Listening and Somerset House Dennis Bovell         An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, sound engineer, composer and producer, Dennis Bovell has earned himself the reputation of Britain’s reggae maestro. He moved from Barbados to south London at the age of 12 and whilst still at school joined his first band, Road Works Ahead. He later formed the group Matumbi which went on to become Britain’s foremost reggae band, at a time when the genre was spreading from Jamaica to an international audience.  Bovell also formed the Dub Band, beginning an enduring partnership with reggae poet Linton Kwesi Johnson which resulted in the production of numerous classic albums. The 1980s saw Bovell in great demand as a producer, working with bands as diverse as The Slits, Chalice, Orange Juice, The Thompson Twins and Bananarama. Bovell has also worked in television and film and continues to record, produce and play music live all over the world.  Margaret Busby OBE, Hon. FRSL , was born in Ghana and educated in the UK. Graduating from London University, she became Britain’s youngest and first Black woman publisher when she co-founded Allison & Busby in 1967, where she was editorial director for 20 years. Subsequently pursuing a career as editor, broadcaster and critic, she has contributed to many publications, written drama for radio and the stage, served as a judge for prestigious literary competitions, and campaigned for diversity in publishing since the 1980s. She compiled the ground-breaking international anthology Daughters of Africa (1992), and 2019’s follow-up, New Daughters of Africa (Myriad).  Normski Norman ‘Normski’ Anderson was bought his first camera by his Jamaican mother at an auction when he was nine years old. His interest in photography was partly inspired by Horace Ové, as he was childhood friends with Ové’s son Zak. Normski was part of the emerging hip hop music scene during the 1980s and his involvement in music culture led

Bonus · Mon, June 10, 2019

Trailer | Get Up, Stand Up Now Podcast

A taster of the Get Up, Stand Up Now podcast series, celebrating generations of black creative pioneers.  A crafted sound odyssey over five episodes, guided by the voices of artists featured in the exhibition who explore the discourse around Black experience, activism, creativity and influence.  Coming up: #1 Motherland  Dennis Bovell, Margaret Busby, Normski, Zak Ové              #2 Dream to Change the World  Zak Ové in conversation with Gaylene Gould, BFI (Head of Cinema & Events), and Sonia Boyce OBE   #3 Masquerade  Zoe Bedeaux, Rhea Storr, Margaret Busby and Zak Ové   #4 Imaginary Landscapes Barby Asante in conversation with Paul Goodwin, CCH Pounder, Zak Ové   #5 Mothership Yinka Shonibare CBE, Shabaka Hutchings, Mowalola Ogunlesi, Zak Ové   Presented by spoken word artist Joshua Idehen Original music by GAIKA, Dennis Bovell, Shabaka Hutchings, with selected tracks from Trojan Records.    The series was produced by Reduced Listening and Somerset House Senior Digital Producer, Somerset House: Eleanor Scott Exec Producer: Joby Waldman Producers: Chris Elcombe, Femi Oriogun-Williams, Mae-Li Evans Researcher: Erica McKoy Get Up, Stand Up Now A major new exhibition celebrating the past 50 years of Black creativity in Britain and beyond, at Somerset House 12 June - 15 September 2019. Beginning with the radical Black filmmaker Horace Ové and his dynamic circle of Windrush generation creative peers and extending to today’s brilliant young Black talent globally, a group of around 100 interdisciplinary artists will showcase work together for the first time, exploring Black experience and influence, from the post-war era to the present day. https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/get-up-stand-up-now

S5 E1 · Tue, April 16, 2019

Khaos Spirit by Serena Korda | Earth Day Season 2019

A new, site-responsive audio work exploring society’s relationship with the natural elements from award-winning artist Serena Korda. Following her acclaimed installations at the National Trust’s Speke Hall and The Hepworth Wakefield, award-winning artist Serena Korda joins Somerset House’s Earth Day 2019 programme with a new, site-responsive work exploring our relationship with the natural elements. Inspired by the Greek primordial goddess of air and mother of birds, Khaos, Korda raises a new flag above the Somerset House courtyard, with the flag design paying homage to a history of maritime warning flags. A flag will accompany the new audio piece which was formed using a handcrafted aeolian harp, a musical instrument named after the ancient Greek god of wind, Aeolus. Korda recorded the harp, which produces sound when a current of air passes through it, during an afternoon spent in and around the dome that holds Somerset House’s flag. Combined with additional field recordings of the flag, the resonance of the flagpole and wind data taken from an anenometer which records wind speed, the resulting audio installation captures the voice of the air.  Visit somersethouse.org.uk for more information on Earth Day Season 2019

S4 E2 · Tue, September 11, 2018

London Design Biennale 2018: Emotional States

The second iteration the London Design Biennale brings the best in global design thinking to Somerset House.  This year it is devoted to the theme of Emotional States and explores big questions and ideas around sustainability, migration, pollution, energy, cities, and social equality. Each participating country or region has explored how design can be used to make a better, more sustainable environment for us all to live in through engaging and immersive installations, innovations, artworks and proposed design solutions. In this podcast Sir John Sorrell, president of the London Design Biennale guides us though a selection of the installations and their designers, focussing on the work displayed by four countries: Latvia, Greece, Lebanon and Pakistan.  The London Design Biennale is at Somerset House until the 23rd October 2018. Book Now: http://bit.ly/LDB2018

S4 E1 · Mon, August 20, 2018

Film4 Summer Screen: Interview with Bart Layton, writer/director of American Animals

An interview with writer/director Bart Layton ahead of the UK premiere of American Animals, a true-crime tale full of high tension, bold style, and black humour. A group of four students come together in classic heist movie fashion (think Reservoir Dogs, because that's what they do) to steal some of the world's rarest books from the special collections room of their college library. Quite why they decided to do this, or why they these juvenile amateur criminals thought they were capable of pulling it off, are just some of the deeper currents that run through this irrepressible thriller that may ostensibly conform to crime film conventions but has a way of telling a story that is very much all its own. American Animals asserts both that “This is” and “This is Not Based on a True Story” right from the opening titles, making it very clear that doubt is going to play a very big part in what's to come. Credit writer-director Bart Layton with the high-wire narrative risks, his skill as a documentarian providing an unexpected extra level to the film that really increases its emotional power. What really gives the action its zest and freshness are the performances from the four young leads – mischievous looking star Evan Peters (Quicksilver in the X-Men franchise and a series regular in American Horror Story), the wonderful Irish actor Barry Keoghan (unforgettable in both Dunkirk and The Killing of a Sacred Deer), Blake Jenner (Supergirl and The Edge of Seventeen) and Jared Abrahamson. Each member of the group is distinctive in their own right, but the best scenes are when they come together as a perfectly imperfect gang of thieves. The UK premiere of American Animals is at Film4 Summer Screen at Somerset House on 22 Aug 2018.

S3 E2 · Sat, July 21, 2018

PROCESS! Evolving Technologies

In our rapidly evolving media landscape, how are projects that might previously have been confined to print media, manifesting online and through other technologies? Panellists explore what diversifying mediums mean for their message and the opportunities, limitations and challenges they pose. Speakers include Gabrielle de la Puente and Zarine Muhammad The White Pube, Andres Colemenares Internet Age Media, Daniel Caulfield Sriklad Communication Design UAL. Part of PROCESS!, a two day festival celebrating independent media & making presented by Somerset House & Somerset House Studios residents OOMK, bringing together established & emerging designers, artists, activists & publishers to explore, interrogate & share approaches to creative & collaborative process. In the context of high speed media & access to infinite information, how do we create time, space & approaches that can enable us to process the social & political climate & create new media and outputs? Image by Minute Books taken from live illustrations created in response to the talks and insights shared by the speakers.

S3 E1 · Sat, July 21, 2018

PROCESS! Interdependent Publishing

A panel discussion featuring contemporary publishing practices that embrace interdependent approaches as integral to their process and outcomes. How do collaborative and networked modes of thinking, working and producing challenge notions of ‘independence’ within contemporary publishing? Speakers include Abeera Kamran Exhausted Geographies, Dámaso Randulfe Migrant Journal, Maker & Educator Esther McManus and Sofia Niazi OOMK. Part of PROCESS!, a two day festival celebrating independent media & making presented by Somerset House & Somerset House Studios residents OOMK, bringing together established & emerging designers, artists, activists & publishers to explore, interrogate & share approaches to creative & collaborative process. In the context of high speed media & access to infinite information, how do we create time, space & approaches that can enable us to process the social & political climate & create new media and outputs?

S1 E21 · Thu, June 07, 2018

Print | Marsha Rowe - Spare Rib

Interview with Marsha Rowe, Co-Founder of Spare Rib. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E20 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Tony Elliott - Time Out

An interview with Tony Elliott, Founder of Time Out. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E19 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Rhona Ezuma - Thiiird

Interview with Rhona Ezuma, Editor in Chief of Thiiird. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E18 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Elisabeth Krohn - Sabat

Interview with Elisabeth Krohn, Editor and Creative Director of Sabat Magazine

S1 E17 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Alpa Depani - ROMP

Interview with Alpa Depani, Editor of ROMP. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E16 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Nick Logan - The Face

Interview with Nick Logan, Founder of The Face. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E15 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Ian Gabb (Letterpress Monster) - Royal College of Art

Interview with Ian Gabb aka Letterpress Monster and the letterpress technician for Royal College of Art.  Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E14 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | John L. Walters - Eye

An interview with John L. Walters, Editor of Eye magazine. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E13 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Pat Randle - Double Dagger

An interview with Pat Randle, Co-Founder of Double Dagger magazine. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E12 · Wed, June 06, 2018

Print | Sharan Dhaliwal - Burnt Roti

An interview with Sharan Dhaliwal, Editor in Chief of Burnt Roti. Print! Tearing it Up at Somerset House explores the history and impact of the British independent magazine scene today. The exhibition charts the evolution of polemic and progressive print publications and celebrates the current diverse industry of innovative independent magazines.  https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/print-tearing-it-up

S1 E11 · Wed, September 20, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: The Future of Fragrance

Perfume is becoming a different kind of cultural experience . In this podcast episode, practitioners and experts spanning the world of perfume, look towards an exciting new future for perfume. New ingredients are providing perfumers with further possibilities for experimentation. Perfumers are exploring novel ideas by embarking on projects with other artists - from photographers to musicians. Contributors explore how the principles of perfume will develop in our increasingly visually saturated world. Featuring: Michael Edwards, fragrance expert, author, and founding editor of Fragrances of the World , the largest guide to perfume classification. Paul Schütze, multi sensory artist and perfumer. Timothy Han, perfumer, founder of Timothy Han / Edition. Sumit Bhasin, Senior Vice President of R&D Luxury at Coty Luxury Felix Mayr-Harting, Head of Fine Fragrances at Givaudan Killian Wells, perfumer Bertrand Duchaufour, perfumer Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent until 23 September at Somerset House. #perfumepioneers

S1 E10 · Fri, September 15, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Killian Wells

The olfactory rebel. Los Angeles-based Killian Wells, pop musician turned perfumer turned millennial entrepreneur, represents less a relaxing of the rules of perfumery and more their ripping up. His fragrance house Xyrena pays homage to the retro culture of the 1980s and to the smells we risk losing in the march of modernity. Wells’ first job was a cinema projectionist and this colours the format of the range; each perfume is packaged in a VHS case, with the invitation to display and reminisce over a movie library of scents. Dark Ride, which features in Perfume, is an olfactory snapshot of a log flume ride - Wells’ references are Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean and Splash Mountain rides. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent continues until 23 September at Somerset House. #perfumepioneers #fragrance #exhibition

S1 E9 · Thu, August 31, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Bertrand Duchaufour

Bertrand Duchaufour, creator of Avignon, is one of the most prolific and respected perfumers within niche perfumery. He was expecting to become a geologist like his father, until at the age of 16 he smelt his girlfriend's Chanel No. 19, launching a new obsession. Trained in Grasse, Duchaufour now works independently, travelling and taking photographs restlessly to generate new ideas. Over his career he has followed several olfactive paths to which he is repeatedly compelled to return. That for which he is best known is incense. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent continues until 23 September at Somerset House. #perfumepioneers #fragrance #exhibition

S1 E8 · Sat, August 19, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Andy Tauer

Perfumer Andy Tauer is a hobbyist turned professional, inspiring many to try their hand at perfumery. Tauer describes the creation of L’Air du Désert Marocain, which features in the exhibition Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent, in cinematic terms as though standing in a desert scene receptive to the odours carried in the breeze. No perfumer has done more than Andy Tauer to communicate with perfume enthusiasts, and to bridge the knowledge gap between creator and consumer. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent continues until 23 Sept. https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/perfume #perfumepioneers #andytauer Podcast produced by Jo Barratt.

S1 E7 · Fri, August 11, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Lyn Harris

Lyn Harris has brought a new relaxed confidence to British perfumery, promoting the role of natural materials. Trained in Paris and Grasse, she emphasises the quality of her ingredients which are allowed to shine through using pared down formulations. In Charcoal, Harris has found beauty in a material usually considered prosaic. The perfume holds the tension between hot, rough smoke and a smooth green translucency, and is built around two grades of juniper oil. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent continues until 23 Sept. #perfumepioneers Podcast produced by Jo Barratt.

S1 E6 · Fri, August 04, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: David Seth Moltz

Free from European perfumery heritage, musician and self-taught perfumer David Seth Moltz is at the vanguard of a thrilling and unorthodox scent movement. His Brooklyn based house D.S. & Durga, co-founded in 2008 with his wife Kavi Durga, uses perfume to tell stories of offbeat landscapes and folk histories capturing places in time and space. David shares his story behind El Cosmico, the perfume created for the eponymous trailer and teepee campsite in the city of Marfa, in the remote high desert of West Texas. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent continues until 23 Sept. #perfumepioneers Podcast produced by Jo Barratt, commissioned by Somerset House. #dsdurga #davidsethmoltz #newyork #brooklyn #perfume

S1 E5 · Fri, July 28, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Daniela Andrier

Daniela Andrier's perfumery is about evolution, not revolution. Her creation Purple Rain for Prada Olfactories (2015) is an exquisite, seamless layering of iris effects. Daniella introduces her philosophical approach to perfumery and gives insight into how our sense of smell can play an important role in memory, and our understanding of time and space. Purple Rain is designed to prompt a sense of deja vu by smelling distinct yet somehow familiar. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent continues at Somerset House until 23 September. #perfumepioneers https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/perfume http://perfume.digital/ Podcast produced by Jo Barratt #perfume #scent #danielaandrier #purplerain #prada

S1 E4 · Fri, July 14, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Antoine Lie

Antoine Lie talks about love and bodily fluids as he introduces the concept behind Sécretions Magnifiques, perhaps the most provocative scent within the Perfume exhibition. Recalling the height of sexual pleasure with the smells of semen, sweat and milk, the perfume has been highly divisive since its launch a decade ago, labelled as both attractive and repulsive. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent continues at Somerset House until 12 September. #perfumepioneers perfume.digital Podcast produced by Jo Barratt

S1 E3 · Thu, July 06, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Geza Schoen

The latest Perfume Pioneers podcasts features German entrepreneur Geza Schoen who introduces his elusive perfume Molecule 01, containing just one material known as Iso E Super. The molecule has been used in the making of perfume since the 1970's. Geza explains how his perfume, containing just one synthetic ingredient and a scent that many are unable to smell, became a pop culture phenomenon.

S1 E2 · Thu, June 29, 2017

Perfume Pioneers: Mark Buxton

Mark Buxton's Comme des Garçons 2 changed our perceptions of what perfume could be. In the first episode of the Perfume Pioneers series Mark gives insight into his madcap entry to the perfume world and Comme des Garçons 2 which features in the exhibition. It was created in response to a one-line brief to create the smell of a swimming pool of ink. Perfume: A Sensory Journey Through Contemporary Scent, invites you to go on an olfactory journey through some of the most important perfumes over the last 20 years. https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/perfume 21 Jun - 17 Sep 2017

S1 E1 · Tue, June 20, 2017

Perfume: An introduction

An introduction to Perfume: a sensory journey through contemporary scent, at Somerset House, 21 Jun - 17 Sep 2017. An introduction from the perfumers featured in the multi-sensory exhibition exploring ten contemporary cult perfumes shaking up scent culture and the unseen works of art worn on our skin. Contemporary perfume provocateurs are dispensing with traditional high gloss communication concepts, gender boundaries and conventional notions of good taste. www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/perfume