As part of the 2019 Gasworks International Residency Programme, Mercedes Zobel, in partnership with Outset, supported a 3-month residency for Filipino artist Cian Dayrit, hosted at the Outset Residency Studio.
RESIDENCY: 7th January - 25th March 2019.
Cian Dayrit:
Cian Dayrit appropriates traditions of cartography and spatial representation to present a critical stance on the authorship and content of the map format. Working across painting, sculpture and tapestry, he examines legacies of colonial violence and oppression latent in cultural and political institutions. His work often utilises humour to present a satirical view of how power is exerted and reinforced through ideas, symbols and conventions often taken for granted and viewed as benevolent.
During his residency at Gasworks, Dayrit conducted research in the archives of SOAS (The School of Oriental & African Studies) that informed the work he produced for the exhibition following the residency titled Motions of this kind: propositions and problems of belatedness at SOAS’s Brunei Gallery. Of particular interest was the collection of historian Ifor Ball Powell which was bequeathed to the archive in 1986 and contains extensive materials on the history of Philippines and the British presence there in particular. Running parallel with this investigation was an interest in the development of the social sciences, particularly anthropology, sociology and geography and their role in the expansion of European power and influence.
Gasworks:
Established in 1994, Gasworks is a non-profit contemporary visual art organisation working at the intersection between UK and international practices and debates. They provide studios for London-based artists; commission emerging UK-based and international artists to present their first major exhibitions in the UK; and develop a highly-respected international residencies programme, which offers rare opportunities for international artists to research and develop new work in London. All programmes are accompanied by events and participatory workshops that engage public audiences.
In 2014 Gasworks successfully completed a £2.1 million capital campaign project by purchasing and refurbishing its building. The organisation thus secured a permanent home and a substantial asset, a huge achievement that gives the organization unprecedented resilience and allows it to continue to nurture future generations of UK and international artists, develop new audiences and offer participation opportunities for local families. Gasworks’ redeveloped building opened to the public on 24 September 2015. Outset supported this capital campaign, resulting in the Outset Residency Studio.
The International Residency Programme was established in 1994 to support the development of emerging non-UK based artists offering them a 3-month residency in London and the opportunity to research and make new work inspired by the local artistic community and in a supportive environment.
Each year Gasworks provides 16 international artists with a studio in a building that houses a total of 11 studios (7 rented to London- based artists and 4 reserved for the Residency Programme), a gallery and an education space for talks, workshops and other public events.
Residencies are generally non-prescriptive and process-based. They encourage artists to use their time in London to benefit from the resources that the city offers, from public libraries and archives to other arts institutions. At the same time, visiting artists work within a small community of artists and Gasworks provides opportunities to meet and exchange ideas with peers, arts professionals and the wider artistic community.
While the Residency Programme aims to facilitate research and the production of new work, it also includes a diverse range of talks, presentations, performances and open studios that help disseminate the work of visiting artists to the public.? Residency artists are encouraged to participate in an events programme that aims to disseminate and further contextualise their practice, encouraging dialogue with the public. Events may include talks, seminars, screenings, workshops and performances.
Open Studios weekend sessions are held quarterly, offering audiences the opportunity to visit the studios and hear about the research and work-in-progress the artists have been developing.
Over the years Gasworks has developed a number of multi-year partnerships with prestigious international institutional and private funders. These include ARKO (Arts Council of Korea), Creative India, IASPIS (Sweden), Goethe Institute (Germany), Gulbenkian Foundation (Portugal), BECA AMA (Chile), Charles Wallace (India & Pakistan), British Council (India and Pakistan) and AC/E (Spain).
Some of the Gasworks alumni include: Subodh Ghupta (India), Song Dong (China); Tania Bruguera (Cuba); Andrew Esiebo (Nigeria); Renata Lucas (Brazil); Gabriel Sierra (Colombia), Ibrahim Mahama (Ghana) and many others.
Cian Dayrit lives and works in Cainta. He acquired a BFA Major in Painting at the University of Philippines in 2011. Recent solo exhibitions include; Busis Ibat Ha Kanayunan, Bellas Artes Outpost, Makati City (2017); Atlas of the Global South, Kaida Gallery, Quezon City; and Pasyon, Art Informal, Mandaluyong (both 2016). Recent group exhibitions include; Long Green Lizards, IFAN Museum of African Arts, Dakar; Imagining Memory: From Amnesia to Anesthesia, 1335 Mabini Gallery, Makati City; Songs for Sabotage, New Museum, New York; and A Beast, a God, and a Line, Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw (all 2018). Dayrit is a recipient of the CCP Thirteen Artists Award 2018.
