Thirst Day, at the Paint Room, Somerset House was a new series in 2018, of informal encounters, centred around an open bar, inspiring a cross-contamination of thinking between artists and residents of Somerset House, inviting a new routine of generosity.
Hosted by Somerset House residents, Outset Contemporary Art Fund and Gaia Art Foundation, the first edition was facilitated by artist Nir Segal.
At the heart of Segal’s practice sits the understanding that, value, meaning, and knowledge are live events. Segal’s works aim at establishing platforms for such events by the consideration of the conditions in which they occur. Generosity is a key method in subverting the encounters from employing responsibility towards employing free will. Thirst Day was an opportunity to perform the invisible act of philanthropy in the shape of an over the counter pub encounters. Inviting the entirety of Somerset House community, this event took the shape of an after-work drink with a subtle twist by having residents as bartenders as well as invited guests to trigger conversation around generosity and collaborations.
Focusing on enabling, one could get a free drink only if the drink was for someone else other than yourself. The positioning of these two conditions (free bar and having to always get a drink to someone else) led guests to practice generosity and engage in an informal discussion around generosity, hospitality and facilitation.
Nir Segal, (b.1980, Israel), lives and works in London. Segal, represented by RawArt Gallery in Tel Aviv, completed his BA studies at the Slade School of Fine Arts, UCL in 2008, his MFA from the Bezalel Academy of Art in 2012, and is expected to complete his PhD at the Slade in 2019. Segal approaches art as a platform to construct models that propose new narratives around existing practices. Employing paintings, installations, performances, proposals and invitations, his works function as links between life and art by reframing the way in which we critically engage in daily practices while interacting with life in a creative way. Segal recently completed a 9 months’ residency at OUTSET studios in Baker street in London where he explored the terms of Free and Generosity as strand of research around collaborations. Segal’s solo shows include: Untitled, Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art, 2017, Israel. Two Work, RawArt Gallery, Tel Aviv, 2016, Israel. Gentle War, 100 Tonson Gallery, Bangkok, 2014, Thailand. And Sit-You-Ate, the National Gallery Bangkok in 2010, Thailand. Previous groups shows include, 12 Star Gallery London, Roaming ROOM London, 100 Years Gallery London, Oded Shatil Tel Aviv, 100 Tonson Thailand, and more.
