Ground Up (40,000 gsm), 2020, and Giving Weight, 2020.







Installation view of Platform: 2020, presented by Edinburgh Art Festival at City Art Centre. Edited images from original photographs by Tom Nolan.



















































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Jeopardies?
HD Video (Vertical format)
13 mins 










 
















































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Mark Bleakley

Platform: 2020, Edinburgh Art Festival.
City Art Centre, Edinburgh. 


About:

This work is the continued exploration of the dialogue between collective experience and weight (and/or gravity): how is this used in, with or against singular and collective bodies?  Within the current crisis I focused on sensations shared through collective action/experience, that Could be explored in isolation. For Platform I presented 3 works; Giving Weight a playful document of a movement and print workshop exploring sensations fo Grounding, groundlessness and inertia. The grounding exercise of printing with body weight is continued to be explored in Ground Up (40’000 gsm) : inspired by the physical weight given to a cause in acts of protest and occupation, I created this reworking of a typographic print “DEADWEIGHT” based on Deutsche Gothic fonts, using my own bodyweight to print the mass of paper. 40’000 gsm refers to the total spread of bodyweight used in the printing; alluding to the potential and power of collective weight/efforts. what remains of the collective body after the event? What is atomised? The final work Jeopardies? explores the three sensations asking What has got a hold of you? socially, politically and emotionally in the form of a corrupted TV game show format. I want to coax a questioning between the viewer and their body, what do i hold onto, what holds onto me/takes from me? How can I use this awareness between sensation and action?

Works featured:

Giving Weight. 16mm and super8 transfer to digital video.

Ground up (40'000gsm). Lino print installation.

Jeopardies? HD Video. 

This body of work was produced with the support of many hands. I am truly thankful for everyones support in developing this work.

Edinburgh Art Festival team:
Jane Connarty, Abi Webster,
Festival install team (Duncan, Steve and Keith)

Platform Festival link

Workshop participants:
Susannah Stark.
Seamus Killick.
Winnie Herbstein.
Saoirse Wall.

Camera and mentoring: Margaret Salmon
Assistance: Igor Slepov
Sound design: Joe Howe.
Music: Conor Hancock.
Photo documentation: Tom Nolan.
Peer support: Josh Wilson and Paul Hughes.