Tatton Park Biennial, Tatton Park

Tatton Park Biennial

FRAMING IDENTITY
8 May–26 September
www.tattonparkbiennial.org

Neville Gabie A Weight of Ice carried from the North for You
Photo: Neville Gabie

The second Tatton Park Biennial is commissioning over twenty international artists and writers to develop new artworks for the Tatton Park Estate that respond to the idea of Framing Identity.

Artists include Marcia Farquhar who will ride a life-size rocking horse in the grounds of Tatton, Ryan Gander, whose 16-plumed Bird of Paradise appears in shops, windows and the Arboretum and Steve Messam, who will float over-sized ‘lilies’ in Tatton’s Mere. Clara Ursitti offers free chauffeur-driven taxi rides, in which the unmistakable smell of a Rolls Royce Silver Cloud, the ultimate in luxury, is presented in the body of a Nissan Sunny.

Steve Messan Lily
(proposal image)

The work has been devised specifically for the 1,000-acre estate, turning it from an historical site into a platform for installations that invite debate and interaction around a range of subjects. Neville Gabie’s block of ice brought to Tatton from the Arctic and Jimmie Durham’s collection of leaking oil drums invite us to reflect on environmental issues; the social divide is explored in Annika Eriksson’s videos, intercut with the last Lord Egerton’s films and screened in her portable six-seat cinema; the history of the Manison and grounds are reflected in Kate MccGwire’s work in the Mansion’s kitchen, where feathers from local birds spill from the oven to occupy the whole room, whilst Helen Maurer in the Cupola Hall, employs glass once used in chandeliers at Manchester Airport to recall WWII parachute descents at Tatton.

All the artists will be examining Tatton Park as a living and evolving subject rather than an historical keepsake asking what roots people to place, what locates us and how history shapes our relationship to places.

Kate MccGwire Kate MccGwire Evacuate
Photo: Barney Lidster

Partners from across the arts and cultural sectors in the UK have worked with the Biennial to deliver a programme that extends the reach of the event to national and international audiences.

The Biennial is working to position itself as a cultural hub for the region, addressing local people and global issues through international and multidisciplinary practices. As a creative laboratory, the Biennial aims to encourage the growth of artists’ practices and working methods through the support of curators, staff, volunteers and artistic and cultural partners.

Artists commissioned for 2010 include:

Brian W Aldiss, Breda Beban, David Burrows & Simon O’Sullivan/Plastique Fantastique, Fiona Curran, Jimmie Durham, Annika Eriksson, Marcia Farquhar, Jem Finer, Neville Gabie, Ryan Gander, Rebecca Geldard, Oona Grimes, Tony Grisoni, Austin Houldsworth, Helen Maurer, Helen Marten (with Fran Edgerley), Sophie Lascelles, Steve Messam, Kate MccGwire, Jamie Shovlin and Clara Ursitti.

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Marcia Farquhar The Horse is a Noble Animal
Photo: Thierry Bal

Manchester Cornerhouse to Tatton Park Biennial courtesy bus service

Please note that a courtesy bus will operate on the following weekends and the times detailed below: May 29 to 31, June 12 and 13, July 17 and 18, July 31 and Aug 1 and Aug 28 to 30

Departing: Cornerhouse 9.45am; Arriving: Tatton Park, 10.15am
Departing: Tatton Park 1pm; Arriving: Cornerhouse 1.30pm
Departing: Cornerhouse 2pm; Arriving: Tatton Park 2.30pm
Departing: Tatton Park 5.15pm; Arriving: Cornerhouse 5.45pm