- Venue
- Various venues across Whitstable
- Location
- South East England
The Whitstable Biennale 2008 has grown out of the area's developing artists' community and celebrates the quiet coastal town as an increasingly important centre for artists and curators. Arriving in the ‘Pearl of Kent’ I have visions of Patrick McGoohan in the Prisoner being held captive in a small seaside village by an unidentified power. Thankfully this notion is quickly dispelled as I encounter several friendly local residents who issue me with directions. The sense of inclusivity is incredibly welcoming and contrasts significantly with my experiences of other major Bienalles such as Glasgow International.
The unique seaside setting is both beneficial and limiting. Jananne Al-Ani’s The Guide and Flock, situated in a large sea container on Whitstable’s main beach, is perfectly placed. This two screen video installation is part of a new body of work Al-Ani is developing which explores the disappearance of the body in the contested landscapes of the Middle East. A desolate desert track comes into focus on a large screen and an unidentified man walks away from the camera, eventually fading into the distance. In contrast, a postcard-sized monitor shows a herd of sheep grazing on the edge of a busy highway. The calm image is interrupted repeatedly by heavy traffic passing closely in the foreground and this ear-piercing noise initiates a feeling of danger. The concept of the piece is accentuated by its surroundings, the relationship between viewer and herd, beach and desert particularly strong.
Elsewhere I find work with less scope. Individually the artists in Transition Gallery’s That’s Entertainment have produced interesting and vibrant work, particularly John Butterworth and Rosemary Shirley. However, both artist’s respective acrylics and mixed media constructs become swamped by their environment. The show investigates the long tradition of seeking temporal amusements at the seaside, taking a supposedly wry look not only at the concept of escapist pleasure domes but also at lo-fi, hobby-craft worlds of leisure activities. Its themes are underpinned by a not always comfortable sense of the growing gentrification of our seaside towns. The show is set in Butterworth’s studio, a large open window overlooking the beach. This scenario means the outside environment becomes one with the work creating a conflict of interests that proves too problematic for the resulting show to have any sense of irony. Instead That’s Entertainment becomes celebratory rather than investigative.
Too much work at Whitstable Biennale resonates with a romanticised portrayal of English amusements and pleasure activities. Frustration is generated whilst navigating the smaller fringe galleries taking part in the programme suitably titled Local. Harbour Village and Frank gallery offer the usual collection of commodities cashing in on the Biennale banner. I’m sorry but I had enough of watercolours of skiffs whilst spending my childhood summer holidays in Bridlington with my grandparents.
Thankfully the Fishslab Gallery is housing Mike Chavez-Dawson’s The Mind Projected Cinema (What You See Is What You Think And What You Think Is What You See) Part 1. An interdisciplinary artist, Chavez-Dawson’s work over the last nine years has employed a company of alter egos that explore systems of belief and the relationship of fiction to non-fiction. As I enter the Fishslab Gallery I am presented with a disclaimer in which I must declare myself fit to take part in the collaboration. The performances combine the skills of a local ‘hypnotist’ and the artist's own ability to visualize an entire film (in this case The Curse of Dracula) from memory. This fantastically bizarre concept vibrantly questions the potential perception of the audience.
Chavez-Dawson’s performance is intelligently wry and rigorously carried out. The voice-over dialogue provided by the local ‘hypnotist’ usefully acts as a signpost for the context of the work. Statements such as ‘The artist has now visualized 25% of the film’ are spoken over serene meditative background music but behind the humour is clarification of the artist’s intent. The comment ‘Enjoy the rest of your visit to Whitstable Biennale’ and the bowl of free ‘WB’08’ badges perhaps went a little too far but the piece offers some perspective and relief from the inclusiveness of other work found here.
Much has been made of the Biennale growing out of the expanding artists’ community in Whitstable. However, if it does truly want to cement its growing reputation as one of the most important art festivals in the UK there is a need to expand its programme. Although a total of 20 exhibition spaces are used in Local and seven artists directly commissioned for the festival it is the content of this work that needs to be challenged, not necessarily the quantity.