July 2010
Leonardo-2
commissioned by new Science Centre Copernicus in Warsaw has been installed.
Copernicus will be opened for audience in October 2010
2 July- 10 October 2010
Travelling Circus
and Gothic Kinetic are exhibited alongside with Cabaret Mechanical Theatre at
Eretz Israel Museum in Tel-Aviv
March 2010
“Travelling Circus”, “Gothic Kinetic” and Noah’s Ark were exhibited alongside with Cabaret Mechanical Theatre at Granada Science Park for three months. When I asked how many people visited the exhibition, the answer was “millions!”. There should be some truth in it, as they purchased Noah’s Ark for the permanent exhibition in museum.
We managed to see two extraordinary places – Alhambra http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157622554221043/ and Cordova http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157623436020272/
Back home – new creative
initiative by one of Sharmanka faithful friends John Cavanagh – he invites
musicians to respond to kinemats with the music. The opening
session by improvising musician Raymond
Macdonald was extremely interesting – http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157623442554715/
These sessions will take place
every first Thursday of the month following Sharmanka 7pm show.
Another friend of Sharmanka,
Brigitte Geddes put The Millennium Clock, which we made in cooperation with Tim
Stead, Annica Sandstrom and Jurgen Tubeck , into competition to be recognised
as 100th object in History of the World. – you can see it now on the
website of the project
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/VnLJ0mJ9S1G6VwJk4X-l9g
But Brigitte want to go further and make the Clock to be chosen amongst
thousands other object competing for the place and ask you to support her by
leaving your comments there.
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December 09
We went to Israel to install there “Tower of Pisa”, which we donated to Jerusalem Science Museum, and spent few days travelling the country from Ashkelon to Galil and Dead Sea, meeting family and friends.
Pictures - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157622956804186/
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October2009
On
12 September Sharmanka was re-opened as part of art and creativity centre
Trongate 103 (alongside with Glasgow Print Studio, Street Level Photoworks,
Transmission, Project Ability, Glasgow Media Access Centre, Glasgow Independant
Studios and Cafe Cossachok (Russian- Scottish Cultural Centre)
Pictures
of the Gallery and the opening ceremony are here http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157622391159977/
As
we were given only seven weeks instead of four months we needed to transfer the
gallery, only half of sculptures are working at the moment – the other half
will be operational at the end of January
There
are certainly more audience and more performances than we ever had at old
gallery – in spite that Sharmanka is tucked in a far end of the first floor
corridor and it takes an effort to find it.
Because
builders did not provide us with power cable at the kitchen in new gallery, we
went to celebrate Eduard’s 70 birthday to Balquihiddar Village Hall (have you
read Walter Scott? It is where Rob Roy grave is – just in the middle of the
Highlands) There was a nice crowd with friends and relatives who made an effort
to come not only from West and East Coast of Scotland, but also from
St.Petersburg, Tel-Aviv, London, Seattle, Stockholm, Beer-Sheva, and
Leipzig. Some of them knew Sharmanka before Sharmanka, some helped it to be
built and to survive, some keep supporting us for many years – we are thankful
to all!
Pictures
of celebration and adventures of our guests in Scotland are here http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157622482885186/
At
the moment we are installing exhibition at Granada Science Park http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157622654271686/
- in a good company of Cabaret Mechanical Theatre. Beautiful land, beautiful
museum! We have not been to Alhambra yet, but managed to immerse ourselves into
the waters of Mediterranean – it was really cool!
Tower
of Pisa, which did not fit in the new gallery – 5cm too high! – is packed and
ready to go to the permanent residence at Jerusalem Science Museum.
--------------------------
September2009
There are very few days left before re-opening of Sharmanka @ Trongate103
You can see the work in progress here -
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157619563577525/
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July 2009
Sharmanka took part in Les Folies in Maubeuge – a small town in North France, savaged by each and every war in Europe in last few hundred years. For three days the sleepy town was full of music, dancers, clowns etc. We have performed in derilict and probably the most beautiful building in town, which was built in 17 century by the Jesuits, dececrated during French revolution, partly destroyed in Napoleonic wars, then heavily destroyed in First World war, than rebuilt in 1928 – to suffer again in the next war. It named Salle Sthrau – after hopeless questioning of the host what does the name means, I discovered almost unreadable plaque on the wall – Sthrau was a 15 years old drummer killed in a battle in 1793 (nobody of our French hosts could recollect who fought whom then). There is a plan for restoration, but no money…
Pictures - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157620283262439/
Then Sharmanka performed in Lille, as part of Lille3000, four-month festival, this time dedicated to growing Europe – EuropeXXL
We were the tiny part of it, but get enough of audience attention so our exhibition was extended – first for two weeks and then for two more month
The main feature of the festival is “Parade of Angels and Demons” on the main street – huge disturbing sculptures by Russian collective AES+F, a group of Moscow artists comprising two conceptual architects and a graphic designer, Tatiana Arzamasova, Lev Evzovich and Evgeny Svyatsky, plus fashion photographer Vladimir Fridkes. . Made of polystyrene covered with resin and painted in a brilliant black lacquer, each 6-metre weigh a ton. It makes you think…
The best way of siteseeing in Lille is to walk streets of historical centre, looking at facades above shops. Beautifuly restored French Barocco with Flemish accent!
Pictures - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157620642276898/
Sharmanka Travelling Circus is on at Howden Park Centre in Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland 8 July - 8 August 2009
Sputnik has performed at Greenwich and Doclands Festival, collecting big crowd.
We will get access to new building next week – the first kinemats move in on Thursday
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June 09
Few days ago we installed “The Gloveman” Donation Box at Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock. Pictures – including all working process - are here http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157617822336523/
It was inspired by treasures from museum’s store – including the mangle and fine leather gloves which were speciality of Woodstock, - and the wind in the willows over the river Thames http://www.flickr.com/photos/organize/. Special thanks to our friends Ariadna and Richard Martin who introduced us to Kenneth Grahame book for all ages – Ariadna made a very precise translation of in Russian http://www.geocities.com/ayrmar7/. The beautiful old Singer machine, which became part of “The Gloveman” was timely donated to Sharmanka by Dr. Margaret A. Mackay.
The grotesques from St.Magdalen College http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157616176933363/ and Alice in Wonderland might be also somehow related to “The Gloveman”.
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May 2009
"Sputnik", an outdoor performance installation of Fittings MultiMedia Arts in collaboration with Sharmanka will be performed at “Subway” Festival in Glasgow
23 May 2009 Partick Interchange, Glasgow. 12.30, 2pm & 4pm
More info http://www.fittings.org.uk/sputnik.html
Pictures - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157613616262439/
Sputnik Tour 2009
Norfolk and Norwich Festival - 9 & 10 May, Chapelfield Gardens, Norwich. 11.30, 1.30 & 4pm - www.nnfestival.org.uk
Feast - 6 & 7 June, Platt Field Park, Manchester. 11am, 2pm & 4pm - www.streetsahead.org.uk
Picnic in the park(x.trax showcase)
The Bluecoat - 13 & 14 June, the Bluecoat Courtyard, Liverpool. 11am, 2pm & 4pm - www.thebluecoat.org.uk
Greenwich & Docklands - 25 & 26 June, The Planetarium at the Royal Observatory. 6pm & 8.30 pm - www.festival.org
Winchester Hat Fair - 3 & 4 July (tbc) - www.hatfair.co.uk
Stockton International Riverside Festival - 1 & 2 August - www.sirf.co.uk
DECIBEL Manchester - 15 - 18 September - www.decibelpas.com
The Bristol Do - 26 & 27 September, Portland Square, Bristol. 11am, 2pm & 4pm - www.thebristoldo.com
You can watch new work in progress, “The Gloveman”, a donation box, commissioned by Oxfordshire Museum at http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157617822336523/
7 June 2009 – last show of Sharmanka at 64 Osborne Street
18-21 June 2009 Sharmanka Gothic Circus (Travelling Circus & Gothic Kinetic) at “Les Folies” in Maubeuge, France
26-28 June and “Lille3000” Sharmanka Gothic Circus (Travelling Circus & Gothic Kinetic) at Lille3000, France
8 July - 8 August 2009. Sharmanka Travelling Circus at Howden Park Centre in Livingston, West Lothian.
10 September 2009 – opening of Trongate 103, Glasgow’s unique new creative and visual arts hub. The project is being delivered in a partnership between Glasgow City Council, Culture & Sport Glasgow and eight Merchant City based organisations – Glasgow Print Studio, Project Ability, Street Level Photoworks, Transmission Gallery, Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre, Glasgow Media Access Centre [TBC], Glasgow Independent Studios and The Russian Cultural Centre. Keep track of progress at www.trongate103.com
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April 2009
Bad news first:
Drama department of Scottish Arts Council again rejected our application for grant towards the cost of “Gothic Kinetic” tour in Scotland and N.Ireland – mainly because Sharmanka is not a proper theatre.
Good news:
Pictures of the first preview of "Sputnik", an outdoor performance installationof Fittings MultiMedia Arts www.fittings.org.uk in collaboration with Sharmanka – can be seen at http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157613616262439/
The review, which was published in The Herald in slightly shortened version
Sputnik: a Project of Possibilities
Out of the Blue Drill Hall, Edinburgh
Mary Brennan (7/4/09)
**** (four stars)
“It’s only a sketch,” says Garry Robson before this work-in-progress preview gets under way. “We’ve only had this wonderful toy to play with for five days so far - we’re just beginning to discover its possibilities.” And when the screens shift to the side, there sits a huge new Kinemat created by Sharmanka with Claire Cunningham prepared to infiltrate the various wheels, pulleys and connecting struts of its innards.
Robson’s concept - briefly outlined on the programme sheet - sees a young woman, Jane Janes, about to quit the earth in a machine that ‘fused with her body and soul will transport her to another place.’ Kinemat maestro Eduard Bersudsky’s towering ‘Sputnik’ is a witty amalgam of all sorts: metal rods, criss-crossing like a cat’s cradle, harbour a wealth of tongue-in-cheek comments on why, thanks to our wasteful greed for ‘the next and best’ technological gizmos, Jane’s escape from earth might be necessary. Forget ‘on-board computers’ - there’s an ancient type-writer for Cosmonaut Cunningham to log flight paths and thoughts with, if she ever has the time that is. For it’s her interaction with the structure that brings the Kinemat - the whole, poetic image of the piece - to life.
In these early stages, she and choreographer Mish Weaver have concentrated more on practicalities. But already, with Cunningham’s crutches being tellingly absorbed by the framework and her own daring taking her to the topmost reaches of Sputnik (to a fine cosmic soundscore by Leigh Stirling) there’s a real sense of collective imagination taking flight. And when Sputnik takes wing - like some gorgeous, industrial insect - the onlooker’s heart soars.
The finished piece will tour - but with only one Scottish date: Glasgow’s Subway Festival on May 23rd.
-------------------
February 2009
Sharmanka Gothic Circus @ Mimefest in London was seen practically by all visitors to “Shunt Vaults” – 2000 people at each of three weekends
Sharmanka is making kinetic structure for "Sputnik", an outdoor performance installation of Fittings MultiMedia Arts www.fittings.org.uk
Director – Garry Robson. (He played Clov in Theatre Workshop “Endgame” - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157604022761281/
Performer – Claire Cunningham (please read Mary Brennan article about her in The Herald, http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/features/display.var.1118475.0.0.php
“Sputnik” is accompanied by the blog of the character, Jane Janes http://janejanes.wordpress.com/
You can watch the work in progress at Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157613616262439/
---------------------------
January 2009
Plans for 2009:
Sharmanka Gothic Circus (Travelling Circus + Gothic Kinetic):
- London Mime Festival - Shunt Vaults, 14 - 31 January 2009 http://www.mimefest.co.uk/sharmanka2009.html
- Oxfordshire Museum (Woodstock) - 11/02/09 - 29/03/09
Stage set for outdoor theatre performance “Sputnik” – new production of “Fittings Multimedia Arts” www.fittings.org.uk - April 2009
April – September – we are moving to Trongate 103, Glasgow’s unique new creative and visual arts hub. The project is being delivered in a partnership between Glasgow City Council, Culture & Sport Glasgow and eight Merchant City based organisations – Glasgow Print Studio, Project Ability, Street Level Photoworks, Transmission Gallery, Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre, Glasgow Media Access Centre [TBC], Glasgow Independent Studios and The Russian Cultural Centre. Keep track of progress at www.trongate103.com
Leonardo2, new kinetic sculpture, commissioned by Warsaw Science Centre “Copernicus”, will be on show at Sharmanka in Feb-May 2009 and travel to its destination at the end of 2009. Work – in – progress pictures are to be found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157608352137188/
August 2008
"Wheels of Life" by Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre at Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2008
Performance devised and lit by Sergey Jakovsky (director’s début)
Music by Alexander Knaifel (Russia), Brian Irvine (Northern Ireland) www.brianirvine.co.uk/ , Tomaso Giovanni Albinoni (Republic of Venice), as well as Russian, Jewish and Scottish folk tunes
The Scotsman ***** http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/features/Theatre-Review-Sharmanka-Kinetic-Theatre.4424583.jp
The List **** http://www.list.co.uk/article/10997-wheels-of-life/
Three Weeks ***** http://edinburgh.threeweeks.co.uk/review/4184
Fringe Review ***** http://www.fringereview.co.uk/fringeReview.php?showName=Wheels%20of%20Life
Fest **** http://www.festmag.co.uk/article/43843-wheels-of-life
Audience gave
us 4.9 out of 5
Pictures
at http://flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157606205927275/
May 2008
Sharmanka Travelling Circus
at Gloucester Museum (till 06.09.08)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharmanka/sets/72157605717551681/
Feb 2008
Pictures from
PhantasieMechanik exhibition @ Phaeno http://www.flickr.com/photos/17458814@N05/sets/72157603914943862/
Press about PhantasieMechanik
Time Magazine http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1714784,00.html
De Welt http://www.welt.de/welt_print/article1708468/Maschinen_erzhlen_Geschichten.html
Jan 2008
Sharmanka will take
part in
PhantasieMechanik Exhibition at phaeno
Opening on Saturday 23rd February at the spectacular phaeno Science Centre in Wolfsburg, Germany, this exhibition promises to be one of the best kinetic sculpture exhibitions in recent years.
Spread over 10,000 square feet in Zaha Hadid’s acclaimed new building, more than 70 exhibits will come to life and share their stories. There will be works from Cabaret Mechanical Theatre, as well as fantastic American kinetic sculpture Arthur Ganson, and American artist Norman Tuck, maker of artistic science machines.
Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre will be represented by seven large kinemats – “Noah’s Ark”, “Tower of Pisa”, “Forget me not”, “Orient Express”, “Time of Rats”, “Last Eagle of the Highlands” and “Rag-n-Bone Man”
Wolfsburg is an hour from Berlin by the ICE train, there is a very frequent service, (and phaeno is a few minutes from the station).
Exhibition will run for four month ( till 29.06.08).
Info in German http://www.phaeno.de/mechanik.html
Dec 2007
Sharmanka has received one of “Awards for All” National Lottery Fund, which allow our Travelling Circus to entertain Glaswegians through the dark season. The installation is to be found in Glasgow Merchant City, in the windows of temporary vacant shop at 62 Ingram Street, opposite Albion Street. 10 min performances starts every 30 min from 5.05 pm till 9.05 pm. It will keep working for two months.
Nov 2007
First night of Samuel
Beckett’s Endgame at Theatre-Workshop,
where Sharmanka made a set of kinetic objects and Sergey Jakovsky
designed the light.
Sept 2007
The
sculpture of Colmcille (which means
St.Columba-the-Dove) has been installed at An Tobar Art Centre in Tobermory (Isle
of Mull). The metal bits incorporated in the sculpture are made by Bryony Knox http://www.bryonyknox.com/home.htm
. Special thanks to The Workshop of Tim Stead http://www.timsteadfurniture.co.uk/
for prompting a beautiful dye for the oak.
"Sharmanka
Travelling Circus" exhibition at An Tobar was extremely popular with
locals and with tourists from all over UK, as well as from USA, Canada,
Australia etc. Entries in the visitor book include comments like these:
"Magic - dreamlike and nightmarish", "It gives one renewal hope
for the human race", "Best couple of quid I have spent in a long
time", "Amusing & disturbing, marvellous & memorable",
"Best thing I have been for years, need to spend all day in the
room", "Bizarrely brilliant & strangely surreal - absolutely
inspired", "Just getting better - been three times now",
"Outrageously great!"
At the
workshops, led by Sally Pattrick - young artist from Edinburgh - children made
their own paper automata and mechanical puppets, based on corkscrew. We have
been really impressed by small exhibition of their works.
July 2007
Sharmanka Travelling
Circus exhibition at Croydon Clocktower attracted 12,000 visitors in 12
weeks. As a museum officer wrote to us, "the comments are overwhelmingly
positive – words such as magical, inspired, amazing, brilliant, wonderful,
extraordinary, melancholy, poignant, are repeated regularly. A local Design &
Technology teacher commented that it was essential viewing for DT
teachers"
Travelling Circus is
now back to Scotland, performing in An Tobar Art Centre on Isle of Mull till 1
September
Meanwhile An Tobar
has offered Eduard to make a piece from the old oak, which fall few years ago
during a storm in unique oak woodland on Mull and was donated by Forestry to
Art Centre. Possibly, in one of his previous life Eduard would be
happy to use this oak to carve a dozen figures for some gothic cathedral - but
at the moment only small part of the majestic oak will be used to carve a
figure of the Mull and Iona guardian - St.Columba with
his symbol, a dove.
----------
May 2007
Sharmanka has been put on the map of Eccentric Britain (amongst forty five “uncommonly British tourist attractions“) in new book “Far from Sodding Crowd” (sequence of bestseller “Bollocks to Alton Towers” by Robin Halstead, Jason Hazeley, Alex Morris and Joel Morris). There are five pages of Sharmanka story and detailed review – one of the best pieces written about us. We are really impressed by the book itself – love its concept - and definitely go to explore some of the suggested destinations.
Also in this book - a piece of our reverend colleague Tim Hunkin with his “Under the Pier Show” http://www.timhunkin.com/ , and a poignant story of the beautiful ruin of St.Peter’s seminary in Cadross, which sad tale is to be depicted by our reverend friend Murray Grigor in his “Creative Scotland Award” project http://www.creativescotland.org.uk/ArtistDetails.aspx?ProjectId=86. Eccentric Britain seems to be a small place as you bump into your friends on every corner. But some Scottish places of interest are certainly missing - for the next edition of the book we would recommend John Blundall “World through Wooden Eyes” - http://www.theworldthroughwoodeneyes.co.uk/, and annual show of The Workshop of Tim Stead in Blainslie - http://www.timsteadfurniture.co.uk/ (put in your diary this year dates – 4 – 12 August)
The book is available for bargain price from http://www.amazon.co.uk/Far-Sodding-Crowd-Uncommonly-British/dp/0718149661/ref=pd_bowtega_1/203-0240727-3644715?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180097834&sr=1-1
Meanwhile Sharmanka Travelling Circus is drawing 1000 visitors a week in Croydon Clocktower. On the maintenance visit we were told about guards arguing over the turn to be on duty at Exhibition gallery… Hello, up there! Cut the middle man/woman chatting about “stakeholders” and “benchmarks”, listen to the museum assistants and front-of-house people – they are real “interface” between artist and audience!
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May 2007
Long time ago, at the very beginning of Sharmanka in St.Petersburg (then Leningrad) Eduard Bersudsky made a stage set for the last production of "Four Little Windows" - an amateur theatre studio, in which Tatyana Jakovskaya worked as a director for the previous fourteen years. It was summer of 1991, two months before collapse of Soviet Union. The name of play was highly appropriate - it was Samuel Becket's "Endgame".
Fifteen years later we are back to the same play - this time making stage set for Edinburgh Theatre Workshop http://www.theatre-workshop.com/aboutus.asp.
In August 2000, Theatre Workshop became the first professional producing theatre in Europe to include disabled actors into its main house production. Three years ago we saw their brilliant production of "Three-penny Opera", about which I wrote a review for "St.Petersburg Theatre Magazine" http://ptzh.theatre.ru/2004/37/72/ (sorry, text available only in Russian)
Somehow one day they phone us and offer to work together.
First night will take place 1 November 2007 in Edinburgh, than the show will tour Scotland from Peebles to Stornoway via Glasgow.
We would like to bring it to St.Petersburg, but at the moment it is just a dream.
--------------
April 2007
Eduard
Bersudsky made a donation box for Callender House in Falkirk
- "Rusty the Magician"
The
inspiration for this piece came from two sources:- a beautiful walk from
Falkirk High train station through the woodland to Callender Park and Callender
House, which we have done many times while "Rag-n-bone Man" worked at
"Robot" exhibition there in 2005 and when "Sharmanka Travelling
Circus" performed at Callender House last year, and fantastic
collection of old industrial machinery, kept in so called "workshop"
of the Falkirk Museums.
-------------------
Sharmanka Travelling Circus tour dates for 2007:
20 March - 23 June - Croydon Museum, ClockTower, Croydon
4July - 31 August - An Tobar, Tobermory, Isle of Mull
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December 2006
SHARMANKA GROTTO
In cooperation with Merchant City Heritage Initiative "Noah's Ark" has been installed for the festive season in the window of temporary vacant shop at 73 Trongate (next to the Tron Theatre and our St.Mungo-at-the-Tron). The kinemat performs every hour on an hour from 11am to 9pm
------------------
September 2006
Sharmanka Gallery re-opened at the temporary address - 1Up 64 Osborne Street.
Details about Trongate103 project at http://www.trongate103.com/
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December 2005-September 2006
During the tour Stornoway - Falkirk - Inverness - Thurso - Kingussie "Sharmanka Travelling Circus" was visited by more than 25,000 people
-----------------
Wed 8 February - Saturday 11 March 2006
"Noah's Ark" performs at New Territories Festival at Tramway, Glasgow
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15 November 2005
Exhibition
"Movement and Shadows – The Magic of Sharmanka Theatre"
at the Royal Museum, Chambers Street, Edinburgh
2 December 2005 – 15 January 2006
Kinetic sculptures: Self Portrait, Crusader, Time of Rats, Titanic, Rag-n-Bone Man, Master and Margarita, Orient Express, Noah's Ark
Performances every 30 min from 10.15 am to 4.15 pm
New sculpture " Tree of Life" will be exhibited in the main hall and work every hour.
---------------
at the Main Hall of the Royal Museum
28-30 December 2005 at 2.30 pm
DEREVO Theatre performs with "Tree of Life" and "The Millennium Clock". (It is actually a pan as "Derevo" is Russian for "tree") The project funded by Eduard's Creative Scotland Award.
--------------
SHARMANKA Kinetic Circus on tour
An Lanntair, Stornoway, 9 December 2005 – 28 January 2006
Callendar House, Falkirk, February – May 2006
Swanson Gallery,Thurso - 2 June – 2 July ,
Museum and Art Gallery, Inverness -14 July - 6 August
The Iona Gallery, Kingussie, 18 August – 11 September
The exhibition will feature set of middle-size kinetic sculptures built by Eduard Bersudsky in 2003-2005.
Supported by the Scottish Arts Council National Lottery grant
--------------
Rag-n-bone Man at “ARTBOTS”
Dublin, St.Michael and St.John Church,15-17 July,2005
Our “Rag-n-bone Man” has been chosen to be part of this international artistic robot contest. For more details and directions see http://artbots.org/2005/
We did not win the main prize - staffed ArtBot - it went to the real cockroach driving Martian-style vehicle. But we met a lot of crazy people like us and audience was delighted. It was very useful experience in any sense - now we know much more about what's going in the fields around us and who is our potential collaborators and audience. Walks along Liffey River helped us to survive +30 Celsius, and to see Book of Kells in Trinity College Library was a revelation perfectly timed (help with The Druid's Clock project)
This trip was made possible by support of the generous friends of SHARMANKA. Thank you, Arkady, Brian, Abby and Walter!
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20.03.2005
Eduard Bersudsky is one of ten winners of “The Creative Scotland Awards -2005”
The Scottish Arts Council Creative Scotland
Awards, funded through the National Lottery, support the nation’s leading
artists to experiment and realise imaginative ideas in a major creative
project.
Eduard's project is " The Druid Clock" – a collaboration with Russian
theatre company, Derevo in which bodies of dancers interact with his kinetic
sculptures to create a new performance that examines Scotland’s ancient
heritage and Northern mythology related to the forest.
More at http://www.scottisharts.org.uk/1/latestnews/1001807.aspx
The awards were presented by Richard Holloway, Chairman of the Scottish Arts Council, at the spectacular reception at The Hub in Edinburgh (the headquarters of The Edinburgh International Festival)
Eduard had mastered an elegant bow and "thank you", the rest of his speech was read by Tatyana:
" Nine years ago some tabloids criticised the Scottish Arts Council for awarding a Lottery grant to a couple of Russian emigrants one of whom hardly speak few words in English. I am afraid they will curse you again as I still have not mastered your language. My only excuse is that all these years in Scotland I was busy as I never was in my previous life in Russia.
I would like to use this occasion to express my gratitude to the Scottish Arts Council for my Creative Scotland Award. It will give me a fantastic chance to work with the old friends and compatriots - Russian dance theatre "Derevo", also exiles from St. Petersburg. Based in Germany, this company is well known all around the world for their incredible performances. Every year they come to take part in Edinburgh Fringe, and to collect some "First Fringe" and "Best of the Fringe" awards. We have been dreaming about this collaboration since we met each other 15 years ago -but there never was a producer crazy enough to invest money into such risky business.
This grant will send us on the wonderful journey following a spiritual path, shared by ancient tribes of Northern Europe from Scotland to Russia. Their close ties with nature, their beliefs in the spirits of forest are relevant today - and Scotland is one of the very few places when we can still hear an echo of their steps. (But for this project I will have to master some Gaelic, rather than English!)
I admire this ancient, beautiful and generous country, that is not afraid to be supportive of strangers and eccentrics, - truly CREATIVE SCOTLAND!"
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