Talk Show

Talk Show
A season of speech-based artworks and events
Curated by Will Holder with Richard Birkett and Jennifer Thatcher
6 – 31 May 2009

www.ica.org.uk/talkshow

The ICA has long been a site for heated exchange, through conversation, oration and performance, and the voices of artists, critics, theorists and audience alike have contributed to a sense of constant articulation and production. Talk Show is a month-long programme of events, displays, residencies and workshops that directly address speech as a tool and as a medium to produce and negotiate meaning, both within the field of art and across other areas of life such as politics, business and entertainment.

Many contemporary artists employ the spoken word as a medium or reference point, and Talk Show includes an exhibition of speech-based works. Other spaces are being used as a location for a series of artists’ residencies, events that are open to the public and in which participants will research, rehearse and produce new work, laying bare the function of conversation and collective negotiation. The season also features a large number of performances and presentations by artists, musicians and others, a programme that promises a rich array of experiences. Finally, Talk Show includes a number of workshops and discussions, as well as a conference, a programme that invites the audience to consider the social and cultural adaptation of the voice.

A wide range of resources are linked to Talk Show, and a range of background material and research will be presented on the ICA’s website, as well as in the first issue of Roland, the magazine of the ICA’s visual art programme. Furthermore, the ICA’s new Reading Room will present a number of spoken word archives, allowing visitors to pursue their own research. The ICA has a history of experimental, inter-disciplinary and artist-led programming, and Talk Show is a part of this trajectory. It has been curated by artist, writer and designer Will Holder, with Richard Birkett and Jennifer Thatcher of the ICA. It is produced in partnership with The London Consortium, and with support from the French Embassy, Lightweight Media and Kirin.

EXHIBITION
6 – 31 May: Free
Includes works by Robert Ashley, Pierre Bismuth, Ryan Gander, Beatrice Gibson with Jamie McCarthy, Robert Filliou, Adam Pendleton, Falke Pisano, Seth Price, Manuel Saiz, Frances Stark, Mark Wilsher

RESIDENCIES
castillo/corrales with Jason Simon
6 – 17 May

Melanie Gilligan
18 – 24 May

Stella Capes
24 – 26 May

Fia Backström
25 – 31 May

Plus Minus Ensemble
26 – 31 May

PERFORMANCES AND PRESENTATIONS
Robert Ashley
ICA Theatre: 6 May: 7pm

Jeremiah Day / Simone Forti
ICA Lower Gallery: 7 May: 7pm

Speakeasy
ICA Lower Gallery and Theatre: 9 May: 12–7.30pm

Jimmy Robert and Ian White
ICA Theatre: 11 May: 7pm: Free, booking required

Stephen Sutcliffe
ICA Lower Gallery: 15 May: 7.15pm: Free, booking required

School of Sound
ICA Theatre: 16 May: 7pm: Free, booking required

Sharon Hayes
Offsite: 16 & 17 May: 2pm

Anne-James Chaton and Andy Moor / Chris Mann / Alex Waterman
ICA Theatre: 19 May: 7pm: Free, booking required

Ben Cain
ICA Lower Gallery: 23 May: 3pm

Joan La Barbara
ICA Lower Gallery: 31 May: 4pm

Dexter Sinister
ICA Theatre: 30 May: 7pm: Free, booking required

Plus Minus Ensemble
ICA Theatre: 31 May: 7pm: Free, booking required

WORKSHOPS AND DISCUSSIONS
William Furlong’s Audio Arts
ICA Theatre: In conversation: 8 May: 7pm: Free, booking required
ICA Lower Gallery: Interview with Kutlug Ataman: 14 May: 3pm

They Give Themselves Away Every Time They Open Their Mouths
ICA Lower Gallery: 12 & 21 May: 3 – 5pm

The Vocal Knot
ICA Lower Gallery: 13 May: 7.15pm: Free, booking required

Latin American Political Chants
ICA Lower Gallery: 18 May: 3–5pm

Doublespeak
ICA Lower Gallery: 22 May: 3pm

Effective Speaking in Groups
ICA Upper Gallery: 28 May: 3 – 6pm: Free, booking required

CONFERENCE
Our Speaking Selves
ICA Theatre: 17 May: 2–7pm
With Professor Deborah Cameron, Anne Karpf, Eve Karpf, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Professor Sophie Scott, Dr Laura Wright

FILMS
The Shout
10 May: 2pm

My Dinner with André
17 May: 1.30pm

The Aristocrats
24 May: 2pm

For more information on the Talk Show programme and for booking information visit the ICA website www.ica.org.uk/talkshow or call the box office on +44 20 7930 3647.

EDITIONS
The ICA is publishing a group of editions including a silkscreen print conceived by Will Stuart with Geoff Bailey, as well as a special poster edition by Fia Backström and a publication of the collected films scripts of Chris Evans (written in collaboration with Will Bradley and Tirdad Zolghadr). For more information see the ICA website, or contact Vicky Steer on 020 7766 1425 or vicky.steer@ica.org.uk

PRESS INFORMATION
For press information please contact Zoë Franklin, Press Officer (E: zoe.franklin@ica.org.uk / T: +44 20 7766 1418).

The Institute of Contemporary Arts
The Mall,
London SW1Y 5AH

www.ica.org.uk

The Institute of Contemporary Arts is a registered charity in England, No: 263848