‘cream of the crop’ for SOAK, Plymouth on 25th January

On January 25th I will present a new performance peice as part of the SOAK Live Art event at Leadworks in Plymouth. Organised by Sarah Blissett and Kerry Priest, SOAK is a bi-monthly live art series with a number of performers each time, bringing together live art, experimental performance, film, spoken word and music. For SOAK I will perform ‘cream of the crop’, a development of the research and testing I did on residency at Live Art Ireland in October 2023. Looking at grass and plant life, at rural life, at the impact of the dairy industry, the piece considers interaction of human and other-than-human systems. Simple actions with props and tasks are structured into a sequence, threaded through with spoken text. There are bin liners, a bucket, gloves, knee pads, a body, and words that slip between contexts of climate, sport, and agriculture.

Tickets etc via Eventbrite HERE

Screening: Three Games for Grass

grass bucket head a

The video is up on Vimeo here: https://vimeo.com/872367421?share=copy

‘grass’ residency at Live Art Ireland

From October 1st I will be spending three weeks on a residency at Milford House, the home of Live Art Ireland. The theme for this year’s artist residencies is ‘grass’ and my proposal is to reflect on and develop some new performance material from my relationship with the dairy industry.

Proposal: Having grown up on a dairy farm in West Limerick and now living in Devon, I am familiar with landscapes prioritising a version of grassland, seeking an almost monoculture of grass species, driven by additives to deliver bulk. Dairy cows are exploited to maximise milk production, for consumer products seen as essential. Culturally this industry has been promoted by the Irish State, been part of the story we tell of ourselves to others. Can I find a chink within this edifice to account for the other-than-human, acknowledging species contributing to this landscape system of production and consumption. I want to look at the network of small creameries and cooperatives that developed in the early 20th Century across rural Ireland, and use these as a starting place. I want to look at language and rhythms of this industry, to consider my place within it, and develop text and actions in response.

Some work in progress images and text are up on the Live Art Ireland website now: https://www.live-art.ie/2023/10/05/mark-leahy/