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 Hy...
Mar 23, 2022•28 min
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 l...
Mar 16, 2022•27 min•Season 1Ep. 5
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? W...
Mar 09, 2022•28 min
‘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 c...
Mar 02, 2022•30 min
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 th...
Feb 23, 2022•29 min
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 ...
Feb 16, 2022•29 min
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 pro...
Jan 25, 2022•2 min
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....
Jul 04, 2020•3 min
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 ven...
Jul 03, 2020•38 min•Season 1Ep. 4
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...
Jul 02, 2020•28 min•Season 1Ep. 3
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 Fr...
Jul 01, 2020•25 min•Season 1Ep. 2
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 rega...
Jun 30, 2020•25 min•Season 1Ep. 1
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 s...
Feb 04, 2020•18 min•Season 7Ep. 5
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 bu...
Jan 21, 2020•24 min•Season 7Ep. 4
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 (...
Jan 16, 2020•20 min•Season 7Ep. 3
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. A...
Jan 06, 2020•24 min•Season 7Ep. 2
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 mindse...
Dec 20, 2019•18 min•Season 7Ep. 1
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 S...
Jun 11, 2019•30 min•Season 6Ep. 5
#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...
Jun 11, 2019•32 min•Season 6Ep. 4
#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...
Jun 11, 2019•20 min•Season 6Ep. 3
#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) ar...
Jun 11, 2019•40 min•Season 6Ep. 2
#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...
Jun 11, 2019•28 min•Season 6Ep. 1
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 M...
Jun 10, 2019•2 min
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 fl...
Apr 16, 2019•10 min•Season 5Ep. 1
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 p...
Sep 11, 2018•32 min•Season 4Ep. 2
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 pulli...
Aug 20, 2018•24 min•Season 4Ep. 1
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 ce...
Jul 21, 2018•1 hr 8 min•Season 3Ep. 2
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...
Jul 21, 2018•47 min•Season 3Ep. 1
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
Jun 07, 2018•18 min•Season 1Ep. 21
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
Jun 06, 2018•19 min•Season 1Ep. 20
