Issue 9 - Michael Forbes

Michael Forbes has exhibited nationally and internationally with exhibitions including; Reformation at Yinka Shonibare’s Guest Projects, the Diaspora Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2017, and CPT: Time, History and Memory, Gallatin Galleries, New York. Alongside his artistic practice, Forbes has curated many exhibitions and supports artists’ professional development. Forbes played a leading role in developing the New Art Exchange, Nottingham, and its early program and is a founding member of Primary, an artist studio complex in Nottingham, where he holds a studio and is now Chair of the Board of Trustees. Forbes has a BA (Hons) in photography from Nottingham Trent University and an MA in sculpture from the Royal College of Art.

Selected exhibitions: Space Lapse, Royal Sculpture Society, London (2021); Cut & Mix, New Art Exchange, Nottingham (2021); Pop Up exhibition, Yorkshire Sculpture Park (2021); Tomorrow: London, White Cube Gallery, London (2020); London Grads Now Saatchi Gallery, London (2020); Reformation: Guest Project. Group show with Nadim Chaudry and Barbara Walker (2018); Diaspora Pavilion I Venice to Wolverhampton – Wolverhampton Art Gallery (2018); Venice – Diaspora Platform: International Curators Forum, Palazzo Santa Marina (2017). Awards: Rose Finn-Kelcey Scholarship: Royal College of Art MA Sculpture (2018-20); Paul Hamlyn Artist Award nomination (2018); The International Curators Forum (ICF), with University of the Arts London (UAL) (2016-18); International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP), New York (2011).

Website: www.michaelforbes.org.uk

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/forbesprojects/

1 - Could you explain your practice?  Only you know why you do what you do.

 Contemporary racial politics, migration, blackness, and whiteness are central to the work I make; in relation to universal debates on race, wealth, history, and religion. Making sculptures, installations, photography, animation, and digital media are the external manifestations of the debates above.

I work on a number of different bodies of work at the same time, thereby allowing the intertwining conversations to influence my work, whilst acknowledging some work can only be expressed in certain media.

Over the last 3 years I have developed six bodies of work, including;

·      Gold Christ for Gold People & Black Christ for Black People

·      An El Dorado of 512.6 million

·      Shop… Selling of the Ontology of Whiteness

·      Mapping the Black Body

·      Carnival… beyond the glitz of the parade

·      Masquerade… evolution of the black body

Gold Christ for Gold People & Black Christ for Black People, the ongoing issues of poverty and conflict in Africa have contributed to the increase of mass migration to other parts of the world, particularly Europe. Unfortunately, the option to get to Europe has caused unprecedented numbers of deaths crossing the Mediterranean over the last 30 years, which is reflected in the sculptural and animation (An El Dorado of 512.6 million) work.

Historically there has been a conflict/clash with European and African spiritual beliefs, manifesting in various forms; my work explores how these have impacted contemporary life. I find traditional African masquerade interesting, particularly the adornment, dance, and concealment of the performer’s face, which has influenced, my work Carnival… beyond the glitz of the parade and Masquerade… evolution of the black body, photographic and sculptural work.

 With the suspended and torso of the Christ figure in my work, I bring together the two forms of spiritual beliefs, with the concealment of the Christ figure’s face, thereby denying the image of Christ and the image of whiteness.

The Jesmonite Christ figure is a metaphor for a wider conversation of humanity, the imagery has been influenced by a range of personal experiences whilst traveling in central Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

 The initial use of the wigs in my work came through the development of the Masquerade work, where I explore the relationship between race, religion, and migration. The long straight hair has become a trophy of acquiring Eurocentric notions of beauty, or the aspiration to consume or align oneself with whiteness. The brightly coloured wigs are referred to as party wigs, which can be seen on one level as fun, but on a subconscious level, they carry connotations of dis-ease with one's natural appearance, and heritage. Lack of self-esteem could be associated with wearing a wig daily, thereby creating a mask to hide behind or create a false self.

 Recently, I have developed a number of safety and warning posters to be incorporated into the work, thereby bringing some of the work together in an installation, with no fixed format. The posters refer to being monitored by CCTV, dangers of razor wire (which is incorporated in the masquerade work), and danger of death per se. The posters raise the questions of who is committing the crimes and acts of violence within society and the states’ role in perpetuating it through its institutions and their proxies.

 Shop… Selling the Ontology of Whiteness started out by default, as I was researching and purchasing counterfeit handbags from African migrants on the streets of Europe, for my masquerade sculptures.

The idea/question that came to my mind was; what is being sold through the shop windows, beyond the merchandise? My conclusion, from what I could see and absorb from my research information, was the ontology of whiteness is being actively promoted through the shop windows and the use of the mannequins.

Predominately the mannequins are white, with a small percentage being brown and a few with a black person’s facial features, but coloured white or shades of blue.

The text layers in the work explore the extremities of racial politics and discrimination in relation to white privilege. The abstract text creates a form of pushing me to pull my schematics, thereby the viewer is drawn in by the beauty of the photographic image of the shop window, but part challenged by the text. The work allows the viewer to question their own positionality in relation to this critique. The layering is used as an aesthetic tool in line with fashion advertising, more strikingly the text is a genuine link to the racial political discourse of today.

 Minding the Black Body is my response to being asked: “why the black body” in relation to my proposed work. Using the Mindview software to draw out my thoughts, relating to contemporary and historical experiences of the black body, whilst acknowledging what is projected on the black body from all sectors of society; reflecting their experience, prejudices, insecurities, and fears.

Masquerade… evolution of the black body has evolved from previous masquerade sculptural work, which explored a wider post-colonial conversation in relation to the black / African and white / European. The work explores our common ontology and the road traveled and how do we embrace the now for all its good and failings. Wrapping the work in the black plastic skin acknowledges we are a product of our cultural heritage, with our visual physical, and metaphysical presence. The work gets to a deeper understanding of the complexities of who we are as humans, from all sectors of society – with the evolution of man, comes the evolution of racial politics.

 Masquerade… evolution of the black body honours the black body for its survival through the centuries, acting as a cocoon for its next state of being, which will also face many challenges.

The black skin through millennia has had negative connotations projected on it; to an extent in some sectors of society, there are forecasts of the unborn black child’s’ trajectory through life. From the outside, the black skin has become a signifier of a range of narratives and to some degree through centuries of conditioning, the black mind has consumed and embraced these narratives.

The objects beneath the black shiny plastic are symbols of history, now, myth and fact; all consumed and processed into the making of the black body. In some ways, the work may attempt to neatly wrap up the historical racial politics into a convenient package, which allows us to stride forward, but the bulging lumps and stretch marks may suggest there is more tension lying beneath the surface to come – with the far-right are on the move again, the warning signs are there.

2 - Is art relevant today?

I think art is very relevant today for both the artist and the audience; for the artist, it is the voice and a form of expression, that needs to be expressed and externalised. For the audience, there is an opportunity to engage with the voice of the artist and the concepts they are developing. Equally, the audience has the opportunity to be visually entertained and intellectually challenged by the artist's work, which requires an element of giving yourself up to the work of the artist.

I do question how influential art is in terms of political debate and the ability to have a societal impact. I think the problem is, what work gets shown in public spaces, which generally gets mediated through many lenses of sensitivity.

Art has become part of the entertainment industry, for good or bad.

3 – We are always asked what other artists influence us, we want to know what art you don’t like and which influences you?

There is a lot of work, that does not particularly entertain me and I generally find it dull and decorative. I like to work to push boundaries and move that particular artform forward in an interesting way. I like to work with a bit of punch to it, which can offend at times, by being aggressive, explicit, and challenging.

That said, I like a range of art, including contemporary art practice, the ‘Old Masters’, Pop Art, Modern Art, and Architecture.

4- If you could go back 10-20 years what would you tell your younger self?

Invest heavily in property.

I should of considered returning to the RCA earlier, which would have helped me develop my practice faster and academically, which is what was required to move my work on.

Be more proactive in curating exhibitions and be more confident.

5 – If you could go forward 10-20 years what do you hope to have done or not done?

Forbes Projects to employ people with a proposed organisation structure such as:

·       Director

·       Curator

·       Administration / Bookkeeper

· Fundraiser/development

· Marketing/design

 Artistic Projects and programme 3 – 5yrs 

·       Contemporary sculpture touring exhibition (The Body… It’s All a Metaphor)

·       Presenting shows at Primary and other venues including spaces in London

·       Royal College of Art, Black graduate artist residency programme at Primary

·       Black British contemporary artist film

·       Mentoring programme for young artists, emerging artists and established artists

·       Develop a Contemporary Art Prize in 2023

·       Have a presence in Venice Biennial in 2024