A selection of videos, micro-docs and performance works literally made with anything.
Micro-docs
Trailer - The Light Show
The Light Show is a documentary about legendary projection artist Hugh McSpedden with an original soundtrack by Sun-Bus-5 performed at the 2012 Melbourne Fringe.
In 1968 Australian projection artist Hugh McSpedden began shooting 8mm film. By the 1970s his films magnified into large scale projections using as many as 45 or more projectors. In 1983, grafting modified projectors and lenses together, he created what is considered the first large scale projection onto a public building in Australia, Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building. The Light Show was an avant garde mix of interview and performance focusing on Hugh’s life in light that took place over four nights at the 2012 Melbourne Fringe festival. The Light Show documentary is a glimpse into Hugh’s work with extracts from the 2012 performance event highlighting his fluid and multiple projector array.
Limited release CD/DVD and digital album from Secession Records secession-records.org andandrewgarton.bandcamp.com/album/the-light-show
Inside Bamiyarra
Inside Bamiyarra is a snapshot biopic of a media arts project that brought together a young team of Hazara from refugee backgrounds to work with Melbourne artists and filmmakers. They produced micro-docs, a photo essay and video installation much of which was inspired by a poem.
Bamiyarra was a media arts project of Homelands, a collaboration between La Trobe University, Swinburne University of Technology, City of Melbourne and the Cultural Development Network. Home Lands was funded by an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant, City of Melbourne and the Cultural Development Network.
Interviewing Barbara Tyrell
The legendary South African artist, Barbara Tyrrell, talks about her motivations and describes an event that inspired her life’s work. She was three years old at the time.
Born in 1912, “…Barbara grew up in Zululand in an environment where Zulu tradition flourished. The traditional dress and customs of the Zulu people fascinated her as a child. She spoke their language and was present at many of the Zulu people’s traditional ceremonies.”
Interviewed by Andrew Garton and Liane Greeff.
Sarawak Gone
The last forest communities of Sarawak on the island of Bornea. Visit Sarawak Gone for the entire series and background information.
Sarawak Gone - The Bidayuh and the Dam (full-length 30 min version) from andrew garton on Vimeo.
Actually, he’s a driver… a driver for hire, but still lives in the forest, or what’s left it it. We stopped to take tea on the way to Long Suit. I asked, “Are there sounds from the forest you no longer hear? Sounds you were familiar with that you just don’t hear any more?” He described a soundscape of birds, where they would make certain sounds and during which season.
I’d not had this translated as the story is pretty clear as is and rather mesmerizing to watch and listen to.
Ulu Baram, Sarawak, 2009.
As forest cultures endure the loss of the customary lands, their elders suffer the realisation that theirs is the last generation to remember everything…
Seven generations of music are said to be held by a Sape Master living in the Bakun Dam resettlement scheme, 180km southeast of Bintulu. The Sape is one of the more well known traditional instruments of Sarawak, but few remain who can perform the music of former generations and in the style that represents that heritage. Sarawak Gone is an open licensed micro-docs series raising awareness to the persistent decline of indigenous life and culture in Sarawak, East Malaysia.
On the 23 October 2007 Kelesau Naan, the Headman of the Penan village, Long Kerong, left his wife at a rest area in the forest to check on his traps. He never returned. Two months later his remains were found scattered across the Segita River.
Presented by his son, Nick Kelesau, The Headman explores the events leading up to his disappearance. Kelesau Naan sought only to protect his people and their native customary right to the land they have lived in for centuries. His struggles may well had been his peril, but as Nick and his fellow Penan explain, his legacy endures.
Produced and Directed by Andrew Garton in association with Sarawak Access and with the support of Pro REGENWALD, Umverteilen! and the Artists in Residence program of the Dunmoochin Foundation, Australia.
Bidayuh travel to the Bakun Dam resettlement scheme and hear from the resettled Kenyah at Sungai Asap about their experiences and see first hand the results of relocation. They also meet with Iban at Rumah Agi who fought to retain customary right to their own land in the face of palm oil exploitation. For transcripts and more information go to http://sarawakgone.cc
The Bidayuh, one of more than 40 sub-ethnic groups in Sarawak, face a threat to their livelihood, traditional lands and culture with the development of the controversial Bengoh Dam.
The Penan, one of the more unique of indigenous peoples of Sarawak, live in the forests of Ulu Baram. Some are still nomadic.
Miri, the nearest city, provides the closest hospital to all the indigenous communities of the Ulu Baram. The Penan of Long Kerong, upper Ulu Baram, have squatted in two rundown timber cottages for over 20 years. It has become a kind of half-way house for those who need frequent medical attention and others who need a place to stay when transiting between their village, Miri and / or other parts of Sarawak.
This micro-doc provides a snap-shot of life in the Penan’s Miri “home”. It was cobbled together quickly to assist in raising funds to move Penan from the squat to rented premises in Miri.
Shot with a Canon Powershot S5 IS digital SLR and an Acer Aspire One netbook.
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Penan at “home” in Miri is the final episode of the Sarawak Gone series, Kelesau Naan and the Penan of Ulu Baram.
Kelesau Naan was the former headman of Long Kerong who went missing in October 2007. His partial remains were found in December of that same year. To date no official investigation has been undertaken into his death.
Kelesau was a key witness in a case being brought against the Government of Sarawak and the Samling Timber Company.
Performances
The Light Show
Before we cast video projections onto buildings on Melbourne’s Gertrude St there was Hugh McSpedden’s fantastic light shows. Having started in 1968 Hugh has never stopped bringing joy to Melbournian’s through his delicate, playful and often powerful projections. At the 2012 Gertrude St Projection Festival, Hugh arrived, an unofficial contributing artist, and parked a block away from the fixed exhibits and fired up his rig direct from a van and small generator. Passersby were delighted.
Opening night of The Light Show, Melbourne Fringe 2012, at St Andrews Hall in rural Victoria, Australia. Features projection artist Hugh McSpedden and Sun-Bus-5 - Chip Wardale, Andrew Garton, Steve Law and Kate Adam.
Tong Tana
From the debut performance of TONG TANA, a live version of Free of Sin, I’ve cobbled together (edited) with stills, found images, video portraits of Penan from Long Kerong (Ulu Baram, Sarawak, Malaysia) and video shot at the concert.
TONG TANA is a fusion cabaret realised in collaboration with South African sound illusionists, Benguela and Cape Town based visualist, Andrew Parker (aka Image Master Blink).
Performed at Alliance Francaise, 29 July 2009, Cape Town, South Africa.
Performance for solo voice, oral microphone, hard curve saturation and open licensed visuals. Performed for the launch of the book “Re-inventing Radio”, a Kunstradio initiative, at the The MAK, Vienna, October 2008.
GRIT 02 examines the death of analogue broadcasting by way of readings from numerous sources describing the process of enclosure on public spectrum, the airways and the cultural diversity it affords humanity. The digital spectrum promises to further the spread of sameness the world over.
Homogeneity means “being similar throughout”. What homogeneity brings to societies is an illusion. Sameness is celebrated. Difference is discarded. It is a monoculture, a folly. Sameness will be our undoing.
GRIT 02 includes extracts from the Frequency Post series curated by Garton for KunstRadio, samples from works by Warren Burt, Pei, Steve Law, Ollie Olsen, Jin Shan and Garton.
Visuals from Rot Emulsion by Andy Thomas and Andrew Garton.
Archive sampler of an audio / visual performance commissioned for the opening of the 2001 Taipei International Arts Festival.
Features Don Dale, a work by Robert Iolini from Wrong way Go back!, based on the experiences of inmates, former inmates and potential inmates of Darwin’s notorious Don Dale Juvenile Detention Centre.
Performed by Andrew Garton, John Power, Kim Bounds, Andrew Sargeant in collaboration with Monbaza, Jimi Chen, DJ Ty, VJ Vince and VJ Austin.
For more information see TS_report_UCTIAF2001.pdf
Archive remix of live performance of video and generative audio based on Korean video and sound works.
Performed by Andrew Garton (sound) and Kim Bounds (video) for the Melbourne Fringe Arts Festival, 2000.
SINAWE roughly translates as “improvisation” and is used in the making traditional Korean folk music.
Special thanks to the Korean artists who contributed to this work and Sookmyung University who hosted our visit to Seoul.
Performed by Fierce Throat at Trance Plant, Brisbane Powerhouse, 1994. Features opening sequences, various installations and performance artists from this land mark event.
God’s Tear’s Europa by Andrew Garton.
In memory of James D.
More videos on vimeo/agarton and engagemedia/toysatellite.