CAUTION
artists working on roof

Concept Design _Video Still

Lighting Test

Press Release for Entry Level Exhibition. May 2009

Brewhouse Theatre & Art Centre

23 May- 12 June Café/Bar Area

Artist Simon Lee Dicker has been working with the local community and Project Taunton to look at how, through public art, The Brewhouse Theatre and Arts Centre can improve access and dismantle physical, language and perceptual barriers through participation. This exhibition documents the process so far and presents its continuing forwarding vision.

 The Entry Level project aims to engage with this renewal of the area by challenging the barriers on access to The Brewhouse and effecting physical change that is holistic in its response to the site’s redevelopment.

 This exhibition will outline how artist Simon Lee Dicker intends to creatively address access to the building by directly influencing the physical structure of The Brewhouse’s exterior.

 “Avoiding a singular artistic vision created in isolation and imposing it on the Brewhouse my ideas have been built on a foundation of knowledge based on dialogue with stakeholders, groups that face specific barriers to participation and the flow of people that pass the Brewhouse who live, work, play in and visit Taunton.”

 Alongside the proposed work for the exterior of the building Simon has been working as part of the cross-disciplinary design team developing designs for the area directly outside the Brewhouse. Involvement in this has allowed the underlying principles of access, inclusion and creativity that are integral to the Entry Level project to become part of the overall development of the area, effecting real physical change.

 The Brewhouse Theatre & Arts Centre is currently undergoing a renewed period of engagement with its different communities. This dialogue has been exploring how best the organisation can serve the cultural demands of all members of society and, in turn, questioning the nature of an arts centre in the 21^st century.

 Exhibition continues until 12^th June 2009

Exhibition 23 May - 12 June

This exhibition documents the process so far and presents its continued forward vision.  I have been busy working on on designs over the past 2 months and this exhibition is the first chance to see drawings, animations and sculptural proposals for the exterior of the Brewhouse.

Moving on

Thanks to all of you that shared  your ideas and took time to visit the Entry Level exhibition. There have been a broad range of ideas submitted, addressing practical and perceptual issues effecting access to the Brewhouse.

Ideas include developing links between the building and the outside area, moving the entrance to the South East facing wall, better links with the river, improving the lighting scheme, removing the steps, and a whole host of other suggestions.

Alongside developing ideas for an artwork for the façade of the building I have been working as part of a design team with Landscape Architects SwanPaul, and Architects ADP Yeovil, looking at the possible future development of the Theatre and Art Centre and the surrounding landscaping.

This joined-up approach  encourages a cross fertilisation of ideas that has helped to broaden the scope of the original Entry Level brief. Working closely with SwanPaul,  myself and the Brewhouse team have been able to promote an integrated approach into to the inclusion of art outside the building in the form of a series of 'creative spaces' that reflect the vibrancy and creativity with in the building.

On a practical note, we were really happy to discover that SwanPaul's plans include removing the existing steps at the front of the building and replacing this with a unified surface that has a slight ramp up to the entrance, running all the way from the river bank. This has addressed one of the key practical access issues and has encouraged me to focus on access at a perceptual level.

Exhibition

An exhibition of work showcasing ideas for creative improvements to the exterior of the Brewhouse runs from today (Thursday 12 march) until Sunday 15 March in the Green room at the Brewhouse Theatre & Art Centre.

Work includes over 80 responses from Brewhouse staff, visitors, artists, landscape architects, local business, passers-by and groups that face specific issues regarding physical access. This is also the first chance to see concept drawings by artist Simon Lee Dicker, based on this research.

looking down

The area outside the Brewhouse is seriously lacking and a connection between the façade of the building and this area is vital in improving access to the Theatre & Art Centre.

red carpet event 21/2/09

Today I made a sign saying 'this is for YOU' and placed it at the end of the red carpet. To preempt the question nearly everyone would ask me 'who is this for?', I left the sign at the far end of the carpet and the participatory documents at the other end, encouraging people to walk up to the building. 

I went around to all the local businesses (including Morrisons), encouraging staff and customers to participate and then went and sat on the roof of the Brewhouse to watch people interact with the space.

red carpet event 20/2/09

I moved my 'office' under the shelter of the building and continued writing, drawing, chatting and collecting anecdotal information about the Brewhouse. Alongside the conversations with and drawings made by passers by I spoke to various stakeholders in the Brewhouse including the landscape architects that have been appointed by Project Taunton to develop the area outside the Theatre & Art Centre, the local arts officer, the arts and disability officer, Brewhouse staff, and artists.

red carpet event 19/2/09

Award season is upon us, Baftas, Brits and Oscars flood the media. I borrowed the red carpet and laid it out in front of the Brewhouse, but Danny Boyle and Kate Winslet were nowhere to be seen.

This red carpet was not here to soften the pavement and keep the soles of celebrities shoes clean, it was for you. 

Tapping into the insatiable interest in celebrity culture the carpet was here to encourage passers-by look twice at the Brewhouse and act as an ice-breaker encouraging conversation and participation in Entry level.

I set up my al fresco office at the end of the red carpet, and spent the day chatting, handing out participatory documents and helping people visualise their ideas.

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Event dates

Somersets leading Theatre & Art centre (4)

                                                                                                                                                   47 people have taken photos of me in front of the Brewhouse and only 2 have asked why. 

Will walking past or the mention of the Brewhouse bring back a memory of photographing a stranger? Will this encounter effect the way the photographer sees the Brewhouse? or will it be forgotten seconds after the encounter?

Somersets leading Theatre & Art centre (3)

Again no one asked why I wanted my photo in front of the Brewhouse, so no opportunities arose to discuss "Somersets leading Theatre & Art Centre". 

Although no conversations arose about the Brewhouse I did pose for the most creative young photographer so far. Not content for me to just stand in my normal slightly uncomfortable stance he asked me to jump up on to the raised planter and put my arms around the tree. 

Somersets leading Theatre & Art centre (2)

None of the photographers asked me why I wanted my photo taken in front of the Brewhouse, although one person decided the composition would be better in portrait format. I had a long chat with the last photographer about a number of things including the history of the Brewhouse (run by volunteers), memories of it being built, a feeling that it was going to move to new site down river, the sight lines of the 2 churches being effected because of the new cricket ground development, the new flats overlooking the cricket ground being really expensive and finally about his friend who parked in the park-and-ride and wasn't allowed to walk into town. 

Event dates Confirmed

The Event dates are: 

OUTSIDE THE BREWHOUSE 

10am-2pm on the 19, 20 & 21 February 

to take part in the participatory event

INSIDE THE BREWHOUSE 

12 March (details TBC) 

An Exhibition showing your ideas and the 

details of the proposed artwork

Polishing a turd

Are You at the Brewhouse if you are standing outside the building?

The answer is yes, the space between the building and the pavement is part of the Brewhouse. You would be forgiven for not making this connection because this space looks and feels like an extension to the carpark.

If more people use the outside space, more people are using the Brewhouse. Passively encouraging access through the creation of a social space outside the building is an important consideration that works in conjunction with any thoughts about the façade.

'Polishing a turd' is the term that comes to mind if the artwork is solely an attempt to embellish the façade of the building. The artwork needs to reflect the vibrancy, creativity and quality of the work inside the building and create a more permeable relationship between the inside and outside areas.

Somersets leading Theatre & Art centre

 The start of a conversation with passers-by about the Brewhouse. If the anonymous photographers asked me (and only two did) why I wanted my photograph taken in front of the Brewhouse I would tell them "this is Somersets leading Theater & Art centre" and wait for a response. 

The response from one elderly Gentleman was "That doesn't say much for Somerset then does it!" (He also said he had not been inside for years)

what a stunner

Event dates

I will be outside the Brewhouse on Thursday 19, Friday 20, Saturday 21 February 2009, waiting for you ...  more information to follow.

88,241 heads are better than One

88,241* heads are better than One. Please share your ideas about how the façade of the Brewhouse could be improved. I will be making an artwork in response to you drawings and comments, so, whether your ideas are sublime or rediculous, please have your say.

*numbers according to the 2001 census for Taunton