The connotations associated with food and the re-imagining of still life paintings will always occupy my endeavours. However, for the time-being, I’d like to reduce the time and energy spent on considering food in order to pursuit other facets of my career. And so, from now on, I will spread my workload around three different websites.
‘Somewhere Between Art and Food’ will continue to document exhibitions, workshops and creative practice involving food and paint making. ‘Finding Art in Gaming‘, on the other hand, will focus on an increasingly potent concern of mine: The consideration of video games within the context of fine art. It is a subject which I have always had at least a vague interest in, and it is an interest that has become more pronounced as I have begun to consider nostalgia, glitches and beta games – all elements which can be removed from the confines of gaming and highlighted as having artistic value. ‘Finding Art in Gaming’ will delve much deeper into my thoughts on video games within a fine art context. So why not pop over there and have a look? The site is in pretty early stages of development, and any visual content is lacking, to say the least. Though as I get more acquainted with it, and as I begin to hold exhibitions and events centring on video games, more content will be added.
Reviving Leviathan, a collaborative project with Sharon Mossbeck, looks at the sea creature and seeks to initiate ways of considering how Leviathan can actually manifest itself. An upcoming exhibition, which deals with the theme of ‘drifting’, will feature visual renderings of Leviathan, and will consider the monster as a metaphor: An account of a descent into madness, or a refuge that exists in the wake of loneliness.
Any endeavours removed from the consideration of food will be highlighted on a new page on this very website: Michael Elsewhere will provide details of all non-food creative practices.
On a personal level, I’m bloody excited about all this. Whilst food will always occupy and intrigue me, I have been constantly looking, questioning, investigating and developing my food-based practice for over 5 years. So perhaps it is currently a little sterile, or has reached some kind of conclusion. New directions will allow my career to develop in unexpected ways. Ways even that could shift my focus away from creating work and onto curatorial duties. Plus the time removed from considering food will allow me to return to it fresh, ready to develop it in different and abstractly informed ways.