When: Friday 8 September, 2 - 3PM
Where: Primary, Gallery 2
Booking: Advance booking is essential. Book here.
Join British-Nigerian multidisciplinary artist Nwando Ebizie and UK-based curator, writer and producer Saziso Phiri for an informal in conversation. During September Nwando is in residence at Primary as part of our Work in Common series, that encourages artists to experiment with different ways of working – either testing out a speculative idea or developing new collaborations. Framed by Nwando’s expansive practice, Nwando and Saziso will speak about new work developed during this residency period, exploring an intimacy with the land that expands on ideas of how to be a good ancestor.
Nwando Ebizie, Rewire (2023). Photo by Stephan C Kaffa
Bios:
An unclassifiable polymath, British-Nigerian multidisciplinary artist Nwando fabulates speculative fictions and alternate realities at the intersection of live art, experimental music and multi-sensory installation. She proposes new myths, rituals and provocations for perceptual change, radical care and transformation of the self and community, drawing from science fiction, Black Atlantic ritual cultures, biophilia, neuroscience, her own neurodivergency and Nigerian heritage.
Awards include: An Ivor Novello nomination, an Oram Award, and the Steve Reid Innovation award. Her debut album was released in 2022 on Matthew Herbert’s Accidental Records to critical acclaim.
Commissions include compositions for London Sinfonietta, Aurora Orchestra, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Opera North and Sky Arts.
Her work including live art gigs, sound art installations and curated happenings, has been performanced at Barbican, Rewire Festival, Southbank Centre, Wellcome Collection, Tempo Festival (Rio de Janeiro), Hepworth Wakefield, Melbourne Science Gallery, Tate Britain, Art/Science Museum, Singapore.
Saziso Phiri. Photo by Tom Morley
Saziso Phiri is a UK-based curator, producer, writer and strategist, working predominantly in contemporary visual arts.
She is currently Associate Artistic Director at New Art Exchange. She also holds positions as a Creative ThinkTank Panellist for UK New Artists, Head of Programming and Research for The Drill, an artist development platform for artists working within the African art ecosystem, Director for Young Hustlers C.I.C, and Co-Chair of the East Midlands division of CVAN (Contemporary Visual Arts Network).
She founded The Anti Gallery (2016-2022), a pop-up initiative focused on engaging art outside formal gallery environments. During its four-year phase, the platform delivered around 30 events, including exhibitions, performances, artist talks, artist residencies, film screenings and workshops for children and adults.
Saziso has worked nationally and internationally for and in collaboration with organisations. Her practice is driven by exploring new ways of curating and stimulating perceptive dialogues between artists and audiences through exhibitions and interventions. She is passionate about encouraging arts engagement and participation within and beyond the gallery, and the professional and creative development of artists of all career stages. She has curated, co-curated and produced shows and programming with and for artists of various levels from early career to established.
Her curatorial and producing work has been featured and reviewed in publications such as Aesthetica Magazine, The Guardian, Hypebeast, ArtReview, Black Blossoms and Artplugged. Her writing has been published by ArtReview.
Access:
This event will take place in our first-floor gallery space which is only accessible via stairs. Please email admin@weareprimary.org or call 0115 924 4493 with any access inquiries.