LIVE ART WOC

An evolving programme of live art and performance: An opportunity for debate and discussion of work in this field. For futher information about Live Art WOC and any of the events please email: liveartwoc@hotmail.co.uk

With the excitement of making Grains of Paradise at the Bluecoat in Liverpool and taking part in Hazard, Manchester's site specific live art and performance festival - Live Art WOC gets ready for a new series of events.

Projects in the pipeline will feature new work by artists Adela Jones, Will Pollard and Peter Knowles. Live Art WOC is in the process of re-locating in Northwich, Cheshire and establishing a new base venue to host events. Please do keep an eye on the site over the coming months for our most recent updates and projects!

Live Art WOC was established in May 2006 by Adela Jones

SLUG INFESTATION

Sunday 13 July 2008
Phillips Park, Manchester

A live art event by Adela Jones
In collaboration with Ravensbury Primary School and New East Manchester

Inside a small plastic greenhouse, something big ugly and slimy had been growing; almost completely taken over with no room for plants a glimpse of the mega slugs was enough to make visitors to the park shudder! Prompted into action by the Ravensbury Pest Controllers; and armed with high strength slug pellets - unsuspecting passers by took part in the destruction of the lettuce chomping, fast breeding giant slugs.

Tamed and friendly baby slugs were on site too for handling and helping the public understand the scale of the problem. This event was a real success thanks to the ultra enthusiastic team of Pest Controllers from Ravensbury Community Primary School, Beswick who worked incredibly hard with all the preparations for the event for Seeds of the East a special celebration of gardens in Phillips Park, Beswick.

Performers:

Adela Jones, Will Pollard, Ammie, Matthew, Matthew and Nancy

Photographs by Adela Jones

HOOKED

Saturday 12 July 2008
Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester
A site specific performance Will Pollard & Adela Jones

A trout and a fisherman find common ground in a fountain. Competition and one-upmanship turns to tenderness and love. As the sun set and the flies hatched. Trout and fisherman walked hand in fin into the evening.

Hooked was a collaboration between artists Will Pollard and Adela Jones commissioned by Hazard Manchester’s micro-festival of incidental intervention and sited performance, packed full of chance encounters, random occurrences and risky ventures around and about the city centre an event Produced by hÅb and greenroom.

For more information about Hazard see

http://www.myspace.com/hazardmcr

GRAINS OF PARADISE

Sat 21 & Sun 22 June 2008
At the Bluecoat, Liverpool
A live event by Adela Jones

Grains of Paradise: The launch event for an incredible collection of giant plants nurtured by Liverpool’s Botanical Specialists: Over 130 people attended this event over the two days, during 6 intimate interactive tours of the plants. Adela Jones devised this event in collaboration with a group of families from Liverpool. It was hosted by the Bluecoat and forms part of Fragrant, a citywide project commissioned by Liverpool Culture Company, which explores Liverpool’s Botanical Collection.

Guided by the ‘Head Grower’ visitors were given a unique introduction to the plants and opportunities to interact with the more unusual specimens. Every visitor was presented with floral leis by the assistant botanist and invited by one of the gardeners to name and plant a glittering rich coloured seed they had been given on arrival, whilst being serenaded by a grand piano solo of the well known song Mud, Mud Glorious Mud. Once the seeds were planted a medical screen on wheels was pulled back to reveal four magnificent plants:

Sonitus Contemno - Noise Hater
This plant loves the shade and has an unusual sensitivity to loud noise and touch; it flowers once every 8-9 years. On display it opened its giant leaves to reveal a stunning flower when stroked gently on its leaves but kept suddenly closing up each time Radix Emanio let off a loud noise.

Familiaris Presul - Friendly Dancer
A fast growing friendly plant that craves attention, this specimen was very popular during the tours – it went to seed on clothing of unsuspecting visitors sprinkling red seeds that looked like glitter off its tendrils.

Radix Emanio - Rooty Spreader
A member of the mint family this highly irritant difficult to manage plant lets off regular gassy explosions, visitors assisted the gardeners with the daily task of keeping its rampantly growing roots under control using giant dibbers specially designed for this purpose.

Magnus Imbibo - Big Drinker
Originally coming from dry areas of the tropics this plant usually manages to survive in desert conditions storing water for months at a time in its plump leaves. Grown in captivity it has not had the usual fight for survival; this has made it very demanding. During the tours this plant was heard by visitors gasping for a drink and asking for water, they helped keep it quiet by squirting it with water.

After the special plant introductions, visitors were ushered through to witness Botanist, Dr. Pollard performing a live plant dissection. On a giant block spot lit in four corners. The visitors were instructed to stand in a circle around this large specimen: They were invited to taste the sweet pollen of the plant; who became increasingly agitated as they did so – the event concluded as the noise of the wailing dissected plant became unbearable. The plants may be seen on display again in September 2008 at Croxteth Park in Liverpool.

Performers:

Alan Crombie, Jade Crombie, Faye Crombie, Kali & Charlie, Adela Jones

Will Pollard, Charlotte Tupper, Sally Grimwood, Matthew Keogh, Sian Jones,

Helen Jones, Gerallt Jones, Annie McClean.

Thank you very much to everyone who worked on this project! It was great fun!

Photographs by Andrew Brooks