Andre Stitt

EXHIBITION: Substance

ARTISTS: Andre Stitt

DATES: 29th January – 6th March 2010

LOCATION: Golden Thread Gallery, 84 -94 Great Patrick Street, Belfast, 02890 330920

E-MAIL: info@gtgallery.co.uk

WEB: www.goldenthreadgallery.co.uk



The Golden Thread Gallery, supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Belfast City Council would be delighted

if you would join us at the launch of Substance: a major solo exhibition by André Stitt between 6pm and 8pm on Friday 29th

January 2010.



Stitt is one of Northern Ireland’s most important contemporary art exports. He is currently based in Cardiff but the themes that

inform his practice are rooted in his formative years in Belfast. His work is highly charged, generally hard hitting and may not be

suitable for all audiences. Nevertheless, it is important that we take this opportunity to bring this substantial exhibition to a local

audience.



Like a hybrid catalogue/retrospective, Substance provides valuable insights into Stitt’s performances or ‘akshuns’ and includes

a significant number of pieces that have never been displayed before. The project was conceived by the Spacex Gallery in

Exeter and has been expanded and further developed for this exhibition in the Golden Thread Gallery.



André Stitt’s performance work focuses on difficult and traumatic themes including alienation, oppression, coercion and conflict

and often refers back to his experiences of Belfast in the 70s and 80s. We feel that the time is right to revisit this work afresh. As

well as a cooling of the political climate, there is now an adequate distance between the events that incited his ‘akshuns’and

the documentation or residue of his performances to look at the work from a more objective viewpoint.



A short film documentary by Lee Stitt, Finbar Maginn & Séan Kaluarachchi in conversation with André Stitt will also be shown

for the duration of the exhibition.



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About the artist.



Born in Belfast, N. Ireland in 1958 , Stitt is considered one of Europe's foremost performance and interdisciplinary artists. He has

worked as an experimental artist since 1976 creating hundreds of unique works at major galleries, festivals, alternative venues

and sites specific throughout the world.
Recent work includes: Venice Biennale 2005, Blatic Contemporary Art Centre, England 2005, The Drawing Centre, New York, 2006,

Artspace, Sydney 2007, Asiatopia, Bangkok 2008, Spacex Gallery, England 2008, The Lab, New York, 2009, MCAC, Northern Ireland

2009.

In 2008 he was awarded the prestigious Creative Wales Award.

He is Professor of Performance and Interdisciplinary Art at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff and is the director of the Centre for

Fine Art Research at Cardiff School of Art & Design, Wales, UK.

In 2000 he opened trace: Installaction Artspace in Cardiff initiating a robust programme of international time based work.



For more information on the artist see: http://www.andrestitt.com/



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