Draw to Perform 2 was a collective live drawing installation event in London, independently curated by artist Ram Samocha. International artists presented works using conventional drawing tools—pencils, charcoal, and markers—and unconventional digital prints, experimental mark making methods, and labouring tools, including Polyfilla and plumber’s twine. The nature of these materials determined how the artist acted, moved, and performed in the space. Concurrently performing drawings for six continuous hours, the twelve artists (including Kellie O’Dempsey) used diverse strategies in accordance with their own practice, working within self-determined parameters in separate areas of a warehouse.
The space was open to the public as a live durational time-based performance. The audience could wander through or participate in (some) works according to their desire and interest. As witnesses, the audience activated the space, which made them participants in the event. The space or site of a performance drawing can inform the work. The Draw to Perform 2 venue was a warehouse in South London. It was a coId, hard, dark concrete building in an inner-city industrial area. The location can also invariably affect and establish how the performance drawing is read.
Kellie’s own performance drawings at the event were a direct response to the space and those who occupied it during the six hours. The installation or configuration of her setup was designed according to the architectural features of the corner she inhabited. Using materials gathered from the local hardware and art shop, digital projections, and black tape, the images traversed two walls and the floor. She drew both the moving gestures of the audience and the other artists that could be seen from her space, constantly swapping materials from traditional means to live digital drawing and animation in an attempt to respond to the mechanics of the environment. She drew River Lin as he moved through his floured surface; she drew the viewers who passed by and those who stayed; She attempted to draw the ever changing now. As people moved, the drawing was altered, producing an evolving observational tableau.
Video https://drawtoperform.com/draw-to-perform-page/draw-to-perform2/videos/
Draw to Perform 2 website
