Blog — Studio of S Mark Gubb

It's been a long, long, time since I posted an update. An inexcusably long time in fact. That's not to say that nothing has been going on. I won't go in to everything, just some edited highlights, then I'll try and be back more often with general updates about what's going on in the world of The Studio of S Mark Gubb.

First thing to flag up is that I’m exhibiting as part of a show that’s been curated by Ross Sinclair at the Queens Park Railway Club in Glasgow - ‘Artists who make music Musicians who make art’. The line-up of artists involved is extensive and impressive and way too long to list here. The show runs until 25th March and there’s all the info on the QPRC website

Bubbling away in the background, and now finally coming to fruition, is a project I've been involved in on the Nine Elms development in Battersea. It's a two-part commission, one of which will see a collection of seven works set in to the hardscaping around a new development opposite Battersea Park - Vista - and the second of which is a new sculptural lighting commission to be set on one of the railway arches behind the development. The seven hardscaping works are going in the ground as we speak and the lighting commission should be there by the summer or so. To give a little taster, here's probably my favourite, which is a piece of marble that's been cut and engraved to look like a torn jotter page and set in to a granite plank, containing the words often spoken by Joe Strummer when the Clash would play 'London Calling, live...

Also, I recently got to go to Los Angeles for a long weekend as I'd been invited to speak at a conference at UCLA - 'Curating Resistance: Punk as Archival Method'. I was invited to re-present a version of my performance 'God So Loves Decay' and then to talk about it. I love Los Angeles and so any reason to go there is reason enough, especially when I get to spend the weekend hanging around the UCLA campus listening to fantastic presentations about punk from different people. There are too many highlights to mention, but a particular shout must go out to the folks from the 309 Punk Museum Project and Michelle Cruz Gonzales who I had the pleasure of presenting alongside - maybe better known as the drummer from Spitboy.

The 309 Punk Museum Project is a live project, attempting to raise the money to buy a house in Pensacola, Florida, to save it from redevelopment. The house has a fascinating history and has been a cornerstone in the punk music scene there for decades. It's a great project. Take a look and donate if you can, as the clock is ticking for them to reach their goal. I must also thank my employer, The University of Worcester, who stumped up the cash from research funds for me to go. Here are a couple of pictures from the weekend (starting with the good folks from 309...)

Being there also meant I got the chance to catch up with some people, one of which specifically links to the last bit of news.

I'm going to be having a solo show at Mostyn in March 2019. But it's not just a solo show. My show will run alongside a solo show of the legendary Pop Artist, Derek Boshier, and I'll be co-curating Derek's show, drawing out connections that exist between our work. All in all a pretty exciting proposition.

It just so happens that Derek is good friends with my friend Jonathan Griffin, so whilst in LA last month I took the opportunity to meet up with both and have breakfast at Moby's excellent vegan restaurant, Little Pine (well worth a visit if you're ever there). It was great to meet Derek again who, when I told him why I was in town, replied, 'Oh right, so I suppose you'd like to hear some punk stories. Have I told you about how I taught Joe Strummer at art school?...' For anyone that knows me, you'll understand the kind of heaven I was in right there.

So, I'll sign off with a picture of me, Derek and his girlfriend enjoying breakfast at Moby's place.

I'm currently making work for a new Division of Labour project that will be exhibited in Worcester and London later this year (October and November respectively).

The project is based around 'Migrant Press' - a highly influential independent poetry magazine that existed briefly at the end of the 1950s. There's a fantastic account of its history by Richard Price through this link:

http://www.hydrohotel.net/EssaysMigrant1.htm

For my part of the project, a list of about twenty lucky individuals are going to be receiving a piece of print from me through the post, on a weekly basis, for the next few months. Some of this might respond directly to the content and history of the original Migrant Press, whereas other things might be more autobiographical - a mixture of photography, writing and drawing, in response to things of interest I find in my research and/or the day to day.

This idea of exchange in various forms whether invited or not, is something I'm in the early stages of exploring further through a PhD.

For more information about the project check back here and or the Division of Labour website.

Welsh Translators / September 17, 2018 by Mark Gubb

6th March 2018 / March 6, 2018 by Mark Gubb

Sculpture of the Month / September 16, 2017 by Mark Gubb

Migrant Press: Revisited / July 13, 2017 by Mark Gubb

Münster / June 14, 2017 by Mark Gubb