Notational Portrait(s) Performance

Notational Portrait(s) Performance
Fig.1 Billy Childish, 18032011, Castlefield Gallery
by Mike Chavez-Dawson assisted by Jake Geczy

Notational Portraits* was a performance in which Mike Chavez-Dawson drew 100 portraits throughout the duration of Billy Childish’s talk at Castlefield Gallery. Using a Biro pen each portrait – taking exactly 30 seconds to complete -features a key artist and cultural figure that has had an influence on Chavez-Dawson’s practice.

During the ‘performative documentation’, Jake Geczy scanned each of the drawings and at the end of the performance the drawings were for sale at a nominal fee/donation of 1 pound per drawing. All proceeds were donated to the host venue, in this case Castlefield Gallery.

The scanned drawings will then be dropped into a design template in chronological order and will form the design of a limited edition print, which will be available in variable formats; digital, silkscreen and laser etching.

More on: Mike Chavez-Dawson’s practice is interdisciplinary and research led. This has been framed by an exploration into revealing the ‘myth’ of the artist’s intention/vision against the audience’s perception/reading. He intends to expand and challenge an audience’s experience whilst offering alternative bridges/means to interpret. Collaboration, facilitation and non-sectarianism are at the heart of his creative endeavours. Recent projects, performances and exhibitions have been at TATE Britain, The Whitworth Art Gallery, Barbican, Cornerhouse, The Storey Gallery, and Nottingham Contemporary. He is currently a PhD by Practice research fellow at MIRIAD investigating the borders between performance and documentation from a contemporary visual art perspective. www.myspace.com/mikechavezdawson