Motions of this Kind: Propositions and Problems of Belatedness
Continuing its mission to build trust and cultural relations between the Philippines and the UK, the British Council is pleased to support Motions of this Kind: Propositions and Problems of Belatedness, opening at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS University in London, this 11 April 2019.
Eleven contemporary artists from the Philippines will be on spotlight at the exhibition. Motions of this Kind explores the ebb and flow of images, the surge and sweep of concepts and bodies alike. A title taken from Sir Isaac Newton’s Principia, the expression considers the literal rise and fall of tides as much as the metaphorical fluctuation of ideas. The project explores the historical and contemporary forces linking this archipelago with other key global spheres of social, political, and economic power.
With belatedness as the central theme, Motions of this Kind examines the ways in which time and contemporaneity move through turbulent eddies rather than smooth flowing rivers, creating, as Homi Bhabha termed it, “ambivalent”, “disjunctive” temporalities. It explores the way that time and space are drawn together into tidal currents that can both hasten and delay circulation, disrupt or enable new pathways to emerge. It attempts to diagram the relationships of movement, and the politics of speed, from, within and between the Philippine Islands. The show features newly commissioned work, as well as materials from the never before exhibited, Ifor B. Powell archive. Artists include Yason Banal, Jon Cuyson, Lizza May David / Gabriel Rossell Santillàn, Cian Dayrit, Michelle Dizon, Eisa Jocson, Amy Lien & Enzo Camacho, Kat Medina and Mark Salvatus.
Motions of this Kind is co-curated by practitioners from the UK and Philippines, namely Rafael Schacter, Renan Laru-an, and Merv Espina. The Foyle Special Collections Gallery is curated by Cristina Juan with support from Delphine Mercier. The show incorporates a range of public programming, including a performance by artist Eisa Jocson in her first performance in the UK, a range of experimental film screenings, as well as a two-day conference at SOAS on 12-13 April. All activities are open to the public.
Motions of this Kind has been initiated and generously sponsored by Mercedes Zobel, partner of Outset Contemporary Art Fund, with support from Philippine Studies, SOAS, and The Office of Senator Loren Legarda. The initiative has been made possible by the kind assistance of Approved by Pablo, British Academy, British Council, Delfina Foundation, The Department of Anthropology at University College London, Gasworks, and Philippine Airlines.