Laurie Anderson
Laurie Anderson, Notebook
6 - 30 April, CIRCA 20:23
The Cultural Institute of Radical Contemporary Arts (CIRCA) presents Notebook – a new series of 25 animated pages by groundbreaking multimedia artist, performer, musician and writer, Laurie Anderson. Launching on the full moon (6 – 30 April), Notebook will debut a different video work every evening throughout April at 20:23 on London’s Piccadilly Lights and broadcast across a global network of digital screens in Berlin, Milan, Seoul and Tokyo.
Highlighting her unique blend of the personal, the poetic and the political, Anderson created Notebook in response to the CIRCA 20:23 manifesto: ‘Hope: The Art of Reading What Is Not Yet Written’. Drawing on CIRCA’s distinctive monthly programme, the exhibition will unravel over 25 days as an ongoing narrative of words, drawings and stories. Featuring over 135 chalk-drawings from the artist’s personal notebook, each photographed and edited in stop-motion, Anderson will guide members of the public on an intimate and personal journey.
Laurie Anderson, comments ➳
While I can’t define hope in a few words, people using their own imaginations in the freest way possible makes me feel hopeful.
As part of the #CIRCAECONOMY commitment to invest in the future of art and culture, CIRCA invited curator and author, Vittoria de Franchis, to write this month’s CIRCA Essay in response to Notebook:
‘Laurie Anderson’s proposal for CIRCA 20:23, “Notebook”, consists of 25 animations composed of 135 drawings from her notebook. When I ask her what they are about, she answers: “I prefer not to turn them into language or explicate. The world is already overexplained. Think of them outside of context. Thought balloons. Appearing out of nowhere.” It is no coincidence that Anderson’s piece inaugurates on April’s full moon day. Raising our gaze to look at the sky has become an archaeological gesture, something we romantically associate with menhirs and ancient discoveries. Cities don’t have a sky; the lights are too bright, and pollution veils the firmament. We sometimes have the sensation that nothing is beyond skyscrapers, dangerously becoming condensed cores of our destinies.’
Read the full CIRCA Essay here.
APRIL PROGRAMME
Notebook by Laurie Anderson
6 – 30 April, CIRCA 20:23
20:23 BST ➳ London, Piccadilly Lights
20:23 CET ➳ Berlin, Limes, Kurfürstendamm
20:23 CET ➳ Milan, Cadorna Square, EssilorLuxottica
20:23 KST ➳ Seoul, COEX K-Pop Square
Hourly JST ➳ Tokyo, Shibuya Crossing
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Biography
Laurie Anderson
Laurie Anderson is one of America’s most reknowned – and daring – creative pioneers. Known primarily for her multimedia presentations, she has cast herself in roles as varied as visual artist, composer, poet, photographer, filmmaker, electronics whiz, vocalist, and instrumentalist.
O Superman launched Anderson’s recording career in 1980, rising to number two on the British pop charts and subsequently appearing on Big Science, the first of her seven albums on the Warner Brothers label. Other record releases include Mister Heartbreak, United States Live, Strange Angels, Bright Red, and the soundtrack to her feature film Home of the Brave. A deluxe box set of her Warner Brothers output, Talk Normal, was released in the fall of 2000 on Rhino/Warner Archives. In 2001, Anderson released her first record for Nonesuch Records, entitled Life on a String, which was followed by Live in New York, recorded at Town Hall in New York City in September 2001, and released in May 2002.
Anderson has toured the United States and internationally numerous times with shows ranging from simple spoken word performances to elaborate multimedia events. Major works include United States I-V (1983), Empty Places (1990), The Nerve Bible (1995), and Songs and Stories for Moby Dick, a multimedia stage performance based on the novel by Herman Melville. Songs and Stories for Moby Dick toured internationally throughout 1999 and 2000. In the fall of 2001, Anderson toured the United States and Europe with a band, performing music from Life on a String. She has also presented many solo works, including Happiness, which premiered in 2001 and toured internationally through Spring 2003.