The Rebel Magazine: August 2019

Friday, 30 August 2019

Introducing Alex Day of Polydeus

Over 100 artists are taking part in The Tate Staff Biennale which will take place on the last week of August on Level 5 of Tate Modern. Over the next few weeks The Rebel Magazine will be chatting to some of the Tate staff who are showing their artwork. Today it's the turn of Alex Day of Polydeus.

Where did you grow up and what kind of education did you receive? "Born and bred in Southeast London I graduated from St Martins in 1994 with a degree in Fashion Design."

How long have you been working at Tate and what's the best show you've seen there? "I have been working at the Tate for more than twelve years I think, more than I care to remember anyway. Although the last eight years have been part time, allowing me the opportunity to work on other projects." In the last few years my friend Harry Palmer and I have created a fashion brand "Polydeus" I have enjoyed being around the Lichtenstein's recently as the work I am currently working on has a similar comic book influence."

What can you tell me about the work you're exhibiting in the Tate Modern Show? "The work I am exhibiting in the Tate modern show is titled "Cent Ans" A homage to the Jean Paul Gourds 1985 Citron advert featuring Grace Jones and the 100-year anniversary of the marque. It comprises of four T-shirts and a short video piece."

"The T-shirts and video feature a character I have been developing named "Dot "who inhabits a future devastated world. "Dot" has appeared in previous works by Polydeus and is set to continue." How can people find out about you and you work? "We have an online shop www.Polydeus.com and we can be found on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube."

What's the best thing about working at Tate? "Working at Tate has provided a good source of inspiration, but it's always about the people."

The Tate Staff Biennale will take place on Level 5 of the Blavatnik Building of Tate Modern, Bankside, London SE1 9TG

Thursday, 29 August 2019

Tate Staff Biennale runs until 3rd September

Unearth the hidden talent of Tate Staff at an exhibition showcasing the passion and work of those who keep the gallery running Responding to Tate Exchange’s theme for year 3, Movement, The Inside Job Collective have been invited to take over Tate Exchange and pull together the work of staff across all Tate sites into one exhibition. The exhibition showcases the often-hidden skills of staff members at Tate and allows you to see the impact of working with Tate’s collection has had on their practice. Approaching the different strands of Movement through varying mediums, there will be a dynamic series of live performances, workshops, installations, film and 2D works, as well as an evening of specially curated music and performances from staff for the August edition of Uniqlo Tate Lates. Whether you want to drop-in to a comic-book workshop, share a confession on the place of religion in a secular institution or join a storytelling walk along the Thames, we have loads activations to get involved with. You can also hear the experimental work of sound practitioners, explore the diverse photography, painting and sculptures put together by staff and watch a collection of curated films touching on migration, physical movement, stillness and journeys. This exhibition has been curated and organised by The Inside Job Collective for our colleagues and to share their work alongside the rest of Tate’s collection.

Above: Raksha Patel's photograph, Nai Zindagi, Naya Jeevan (New Life)

Above:Helen Dixon's Big Blue #4

Above: 'On The Road Again' by Harry Pye

Above: Co-curator Micheal Freer photographed by Huguette de Chassiron.

Above: People pointing at the work of Bonnie Wong

Above:Natasha Vasiliou and her art

Above: It takes Two: Will K with Corey Samuel

Above: Co Curator Jumpei Kinoshita with Tate Modern's director Frances Morris

Above:Miguel Zapata is delighted to find himself included in the Inside Job book.

The Inside Job Collective are a group of Tate Staff who organise and curate an exhibition dedicated to the many creative talents of their colleagues. TATE MODERN Tate Exchange Blavatnik Building, Level 5 Bankside London SE1 9TG THURSDAY 29 AUGUST 2019 AT 12.00–18.00 30–31 AUGUST 2019 AT 12.00–22.00 1–3 SEPTEMBER 2019 AT 12.00–18.00

Wednesday, 28 August 2019

Introducing Fred Postles

Where did you grow up and what kind of education did you receive? "I grew up in a small village on the west coast of France, around 1 hour inland from La Rochelle. I went to local schools and was educated in French up until 2008, when my family moved back to the UK, where I completed the last two years of secondary education, received my GCSEs and then went on to study the International Baccalaureate. After that I moved to London and studied Liberal Arts - a course based on the American model, where you can choose your classes from a wide range of arts, humanities and social science courses - with a major in History, focusing on British colonial history. As I write this, I'm in the final few days of my Masters in Visual Anthropology, which has taught me to make anthropologically informed films."

How long have you been working at the Tate and what's the best show you've seen there? "I've been working at Tate since the Hockney show in spring 2017. I think it would be difficult to pick a single show, however my personal highlights have included Mona Hatoum, Ilya and Emilia Kabakov, Soul of a Nation and Giacometti."

What can you tell me about the work you're exhibiting in the Tate modern show? "This year I am exhibiting a cut of what will be the final from my MA. The film is about 'home', focusing on the experience of people who have grown up between two or more societies or communities, looking into how that affects their sense of belonging and identity. It is based around a series of conversations I had with others about what this experience was like."

How can people find out about your work - do you have a website or do Instagram? People can find out about my work on Vimeo https://vimeo.com/fredpostles and my instagram is: https://www.instagram.com/fredpostles/

What's the best thing about working at the Tate? "I'm going to cheat and give two answers here. I've met some great people through working here, so that has to be mentioned. Another thing is, as a precarious worker getting by on fixed term, part time and/or zero hour contracts I would never have been able to afford to see and experience as much art in London as I have been able to do thanks to working at Tate."

Tuesday, 27 August 2019

Introducing Rosie Gibbens

Over 100 artists are taking part in The Tate Staff Biennale which will take place on the last week of August on Level 5 of Tate Modern. Over the next few weeks The Rebel Magazine will be chatting to some of the Tate staff who are showing their artwork. Today it's the turn of Rosie Gibbens

Where did you grow up and what kind of education did you receive? "I grew up in a village near Brighton. Then I moved to London to study 'Performance Design and Practice' at Central Saint Martins. I also did an Ma at the Royal College of Art in 'Contemporary Art Practice' which I finished last year."

How long have you been working at Tate and what's the best show you've seen there? "I've worked at Tate for over two years. There have been many shows I liked.. it's too hard to choose one! I thought the Jesse Darling and Marguerite Humeau rooms in the Art Now section at Tate Britain were both beautiful. I love the Rebecca Horn videos currently showing in the Tanks at Tate Modern too." Also, the Early Years and Family department (which I work in) curated a performance in the 1840s room at TB called 'Men and Girls Dance' by Fevered Sleep that has stuck in my mind. It's an example of family programming which is conceptual and challenging whilst being beneficial for the participants." (above below: Concert for Anarchy by Rebecca Horn)

What can you tell me about the work you're exhibiting in the Tate Modern Show. "It is a short video called 'SeDUCKtion' which documents a failed attempt by me to attract some ducks using a speculum as a beak, washing-up gloves as webbed feet and a repetitive dance. Onlookers are confused. In the voice-over, a child reads online discussions comparing the sexiness of Daisy Duck and Minnie Mouse."

How can people find out about you and you work? My website is: www.rosiegibbens.com My instagram is: www.instagram.com/rosiegibbens What's the best thing about working at Tate? "My colleagues are lovely and working with children is often fun."

The Tate Staff Biennale will take place on Level 5 of the Blavatnik Building of Tate Modern, Bankside, London SE1 9TG

Wednesday, 14 August 2019

Introducing Alexandra Queen

Where did you grow up and what kind of education did you receive? "I grew up on Lesvos island in Greece, but soon I moved to the UK; the fervour I have always felt for Performing Arts drew me to study Drama at the University of Huddersfield in West Yorkshire."

How long have you been working at the Tate and what's the best show you've seen there? "I have worked at the Tate since September 2015. There have been many great shows in Tate over the years, but my favourites were Alexander Calder, Agnes Martin and Dorothea Tanning. I admire and support women artists and I am touched by the beauty, sensitivity and great spirit of those women. As a filmmaker I could not miss the 24-hour film installation of ''The Clock'' by Christian Marclay, which I saw several times."

What can you tell me about the work you're exhibiting in the Tate modern show? "I will be exhibiting ''Little Green Street'', a short silent comedy film which narrates the story of a Little Tramp who faces a formidable challenge when he falls for a maid that he meets on Little Green Street, but his plans are dashed when a prying policeman gets in his way. ''Little Green Street'' was initially inspired by the early short comedy films (12 two-reel ) of Charlie Chaplin, during his period of the silent film era (1916-1917) of film-making with the Mutual Film Corporation. The film pays a tribute to Chaplin's memorable and universal screen persona, ''The Little Tramp''. The project was formed from improvisation work on a basic outline using the art of bodily and facial expressions (pantomime and clowning), comic movements in sync and visual gags, a repertoire of movements for a ''Castlewalk'' dance scene and some (silent) dialogue to communicate the story to the audience. As Chaplin was a pioneer of moving pictures, I tried as a director to imitate and capture on camera the heroes' fast movement pace, and how that pace could change from fast to slow depending on the emotion of the scene - with the help of the skilled cinematographer, Vasily-f (Vasileios Fountoukos), who also works at Tate Modern. ''Little Green Street'' will have its first public screening at the ''Tate Staff Biennale'' exhibition."

How can people find out about your work - do you have a website or do Instagram? People can find out about my work through the following Facebook pages of my short movies: https://www.facebook.com/LittleGreenStreet/ , https://www.facebook.com/DIDshort2015/ or through IMDb, an online database of information related to films and television programmes: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7595341/. They can also contact me via email at: alexandra_kavoura@hotmail.com"

What's the best thing about working at the Tate? "The best thing about working at the Tate is the sense of a community which is passionate about the Arts, and who want to share their personal experience and vast knowledge with visitors. I also love that I am working into a building transformed from a power house into a modern gallery, and I am taken back in time every time I am around in Turbine Hall and the Tanks."

The Tate Staff Biennale will take place on Level 5 of the Blavatnik Building of Tate Modern, Bankside, London SE1 9TG

You Know More Than I Know Exhibition at The Art Academy opens at 6pm on 11/09/19

Steve Gullick, Corin Johnson, James Johnston, Harry Pye, Aleks Wojcik all have work featured in 'You Know More Than I Know'. The exhibition, which includes painting, sculpture, photography, and drawing, takes place at The Art Academy which is the former Newington Library, 155 Walworth Road, London, SE17 1RS.

The opening party is 6pm till 9pm on Wed 11th of September. The gallery will then be open Thurday 12th, Friday 13th, Saturday 14th, and Sunday 15th.