Adam in the City Art Forum Series 2011

3. Rehearsal

Why are so many contemporary artists treating acts of rehearsal as the basis of their practice? Why has there been a re-examination of performance art histories recently? What is the relationship between the repeated act and an ultimate act? Could the interest in rehearsal be a reflection of online modes of communication, where the self is continually performed and identity perpetually edited?

These and other questions will be debated by a chaired panel of speakers in the second of a series of discussions designed to engage key topics that are galvanising thinkers and practitioners.

For further information on this event and to download the related readings: http://www.adamartgallery.org.nz/past-exhibitions/adam-in-the-city-artforum-series-2011/

The participants:

David Cross (Chair) is an artist, writer and curator. He is Associate Professor at Massey University School of Fine Art, and Co-director of the Litmus Research Initiative. His artistic practice focuses on investigating performativity, often through large-scale installations which incorporate and extend contemporary theories of participation. He writes extensively on contemporary art for local and international journals.

Alex Monteith is an Auckland based new media artist, film maker and lecturer at Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland. She majored in photography at Elam for her Bachelor of Fine Arts majoring in Intermedia and the time-based arts for her Master of Fine Arts, and researched experimental film, video and performance for her Doctorate in Fine Arts. Her large-scale works involve collaboration with specialists from outside the art-world including sheep-dog triallists and New Zealand racing motor-cyclists. Monteith is also a competitive surfer.

David O’Donnell is a Senior Lecturer in the School of English Film Theatre and Media Studies at Victoria University of Wellington. He is co-editor (with Marc Maufort) of Performing Aotearoa: New Zealand Theatre and Drama in an Age of Transition. Widely renowned as a theatre director, his areas of research include performance studies and the performative act in everyday life, with a focus on New Zealand and Pacific Island theatre.

Helena Reckitt is a critic and curator currently posted as Senior Lecturer in Curating at Goldsmiths, University of London. She is the 2011 Clark Collection Critic/Curator in Residence at the Victoria University of Wellington. Formerly Senior Curator of Programmes at the Power Plant, Reckitt has previously held curatorial and programming positions at the Institute of Contemporary Art, London, and the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, GA. Reckitt’s research focuses on performance art and feminism.