As the culmination of a year-long collaboration between Guernsey Arts, Arthouse Jersey, and Puglia Culture, six artists will reveal the results of their residency programme.
A Showcase is taking place this evening, (13 December, 17:15 – 19:00) at the Hatton Gallery, Castle Cornet.
Artists included in the residency are Emily Linane, (Guernsey), Katie Bastiman and Oliver Le Gresley, (Jersey), and Puglia artists Alberto Curci, Mariangela Conte and Pasquale Oa.
It features a variety of mediums, including music, spoken word, performance and film.
The project aims to reflect on the similarities and differences between the Channel Islands and the Tremiti Islands, an archipelago in the Adriatic Sea.
Russel Fossey, The Head of Arts Development with Guernsey Arts, said: “This residency really came about from a conversation with Channel Islands Brussels Office, who have a connection with Puglia. This is about blending our cultures and our art and bringing artists from different regions together.
“Of course we’re looking at 2027 and celebrating the year of the Normans, and actually Puglia and the Channel Islands were both obviously influenced by that Norman heritage. So actually this is like an early part of that, we’re ahead of the game in terms of bringing our cultures together!”
The showcase is a one off, with invitations sent out ahead of time. Although another performance is due to take place in Jersey on 17 December.
Mr Fossey said this is part and parcel of Here, Now and Light: “It would have been nice to do more than one performance, but it’s a unique performance. It is a unique performance in Guernsey, there’ll be another unique performance in Jersey, and then it goes away.
“Some of that theme resonates through the performances today as well, that they are one offs.”
The performance will use a smorgasbord of mediums, with each artist bringing their own unique take to the residency, and culminating in just one show.
Music, spoken word, performance and film all play a part, with a variety of other art forms finding their role.
Louise Le Pelley is the Partnership Development Executive at Guernsey Arts.
She said: “We promote the visual arts, literary arts, performance, music, if it’s an art form, we’re here to support it and promote it and inspire people of all ages to come together and be part of it.
“This is a residency which is focused on performance, composition, film and poetry. There’s some wonderful music that’s going on, and it’s an interesting blend of these artists from different cultures who are coming together to create a one off performance, which blends the similarities and differences of islands.”
Asked if we could see more collaborative efforts like Here, Now and Light, with Ms Le Pelley saying, “Absolutely, we are working on building our partnerships for the year of the Normans.”
She concluded: “So working again with Jersey and our partners at Art House Jersey, and also establishing other partnerships within the Normandy region.”
Flying the flag for Guernsey as one of the six artists plying their craft in the showcase is Emily Linane.
She spoke highly of the residency: “It’s been a great experience as an early career artist and musician, and working together and being part of an experience that is sort of bigger than myself.
“My project in this piece has accumulated over my time in Italy and in Jersey and in Guernsey. I have some pieces that incorporate all of the islands, so Tremiti, Jersey and Guernsey. One is called archipelago scape, it’s a soundscape of archipelagos. I’m also singing a song ‘Mother Island’, a song that represents an outer worldly or other worldly person looking over our islands, and taking care of us.”
When asked what she wanted viewers of the piece to take away, it was our responsibility as guardians of the islands we call home:
“I think I want them to be left with the feeling of being the carriers of heritage, and being protectors of islands, the heritage and island life, and I want them to think about passing it on to the next generation.”
Katie Bastiman is one of the artists representing Jersey, her works take inspiration from the 13th century Dante, but focuses on the links between the islands across time, as well as geography:
“My work is very inspired by Dante, which is from 1300s Italy, which sounds initially like it wouldn’t be that relatable today,” Ms Bastiman said, continuing, “I hope people will come away from the performance, feeling confident that they can go and interact with texts from other cultures, from other times, and they can really learn from them and find enjoyment.”
Ms Bastiman also spoke favourably of the residency experience: “It’s been really enriching, I would say, artistically, socially, creativity, culturally, all of the above.
“For all of us, that’s fed into what we’ve been creating as well. I’ve completed a poetry collection during the residencies, which I’m incredibly excited about. I’m just very grateful to have had the opportunity to do so.”
Alberto Curci is one of the three Puglia based artists taking part in the residency programme. He found inspiration in the connections and differences between the Channel Islands and the Tremiti Islands.
Mr Curci said: “For me, it’s a really amazing experience, because I didn’t have the luck until now to work with artists from Jersey and Guernsey, and I really appreciate the Channel Islands, not only the art and environment, but also the history.
“The history, for me, is a really quite important side, and in my work, in my performance, I tried to create a connection between our story in Italy, to your story.”
When asked what he hoped viewers would take away from the showcase, Mr Curci hoped it would help forge some emotional links between the two regions.
“I can answer talking not only for me, but also for other Italian artists. We focused our work about time, distance and material and the place where you are. I hope that the public will go back home with a new feeling, a new perspective.
“How to watch about or think about the time, about the distance, not only in a geometrical way, but also as a feeling, a feeling that is unifying everyone.”