* Click here for project website, here for summary on Artist-in-Residency at King’s College London, and here for a summary of the project on MiND the Gap, a joint scientific blog of several multicenter projects on developmental psychiatry, funded by the European Union.
A new tapestry-installation by Kai, entitled ‘We sat on a mat and had a chat and made maps!’ is one of 6 new works commissioned by Unlimited under its main commission category. Unlimited is an arts commissioning programme that aims to embed work by disabled artists within the UK and international cultural sectors, reach new audiences and shift perceptions of disabled people. Unlimited has been delivered by the disability-led arts organisation Shape Arts and arts-producing organisation Artsadmin since 2013, and is funded from 2016-20 by Arts Council England, Arts Council of Wales, British Council and Spirit of 2012.
A total of 269 entries were sent in for 4 different categories, 60 were shortlisted and 24 were commissioned for nearly £1 million this year. There were two stages in the judging process. Members of the judging panel includes leading producers and directors from the British Council, Arts Council England and Southbank Centre.
Kai’s 1.5 year project celebrates mind-wandering and neurodiversity. It involves a 2mX4m tapestry that will be weaved in Belgium in the same factory that produced Grayson Perry’s tapestries. A key aim of the work is to generate a critical and creative space to explore the boundaries between normal and abnormal behaviour, imagination and pathology, art practice and scientific research, clinician and patient. Under the mentorship of Professor Asherson at the MRC Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry (MRC SGDP) at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN), a key aspect of the practice-led research project is how Kai will gate-immerse herself within the environment of leading researchers in ADHD at King’s College London as a Visiting Researcher. Kai’s collaborators include artists from Submit to Love Studios of Headway East London (charity for people recovering from brain injury). Other members of the team include international practitioners who were behind the successful 8th ASEAN Para Games in Singapore, Philip Tan/Philbeat, Michael Larsson/Ohsoweird and Richard Wright. Kai’s Creative Producer/Project Manager is Alessandra Cianetti/Something Human.
Kai also served on the judging panel for the international commission panel.
Art-science intrusion: Phil and Kai at Monologue Dialogue IV exhibition inside Kai’s installation entitled ‘Crossed wor(l)ds (un-floored) (brain drawing) (2019 itinerary) (after Brexit, Chagall, Billingham, Wes, Savage, 2017)’, The Koppel Project, London.