GFEST 2012 Open Call For Entries

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GFEST – Gaywise FESTival, the premier annual lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) arts festival in London is looking for submissions for this year’s festival.

‘Queer Art queries..’ is the theme of this year’s festival which will take place in November in venues across London.



Niranjan Kamatkar, artistic director of GFEST said, ‘This year we want to address and question the issues and challenges that our community faces on a daily basis. We hope to encourage artists to work together on exciting, thought provoking and innovative work. We want to query what happens in the queer arts world.’ We are looking for submissions from artists and organisations, with a particular focus on collaboration across art form, age and cultural backgrounds. The festival accepts submissions in three categories: films, visual arts and performance.

The deadline for submissions is Friday 29 June 2012.

Submissions are accepted on: www.gaywisefestival.org.uk

For more information on
GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2012 please contact: Wise Thoughts / GFEST – Gaywise FESTival
Tel: 020 8889 9555
info@wisethoughts.org
www.wisethoughts.org / www.gaywisefestival.org.uk

This WEEK: LGBTQ Cross Art Festival in London GFEST 2011 Started

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GFEST 2011 Visual arts exhibition at Dreamspace Gallery

GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2011 started on Monday 7 November with a huge turnout at the Dreamspace Gallery EC1Y 8NA,  in Barbican area of London. The FREE ENTRY exhibition is open to public until 19 November. Mayor of Islington Cllr Phil Kelly attended and  spoke at the private view last night. GFEST is recognised as ‘London’s annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) cross-art festival for all’.

Mayor of Islington talking to festival attendees

GFEST director Niranjan Kamatkar said, “Despite the massive funding crunch this year, I am pleased with the audience turnout and hope people turn up in huge numbers at the rest of the events until 20 November.”
“I am also impressed with the GFEST volunteers help, which is supported by Team London.  GFEST has become a great fun event again this year, showcasing diverse LGBTQ artistic talent,  cool and hip films and performances. We need everyone to turn up at the events to show their support and to make this event successful.” He added.

GFEST 2011 short film screenings at the Prince Charles Cinema on 8, 9 and 10 November showcase a fantastic line-up of shorts and continue to offer a rare chance to watch some of the films on the big screen.
Sensational variety acts at the festival performance events will liven up The Cockpit Theatre in Marylebone on 17, 18 and 19 November.

GFEST 2011 debate at Rich Mix on 15 November looks at the theme of ‘East London: Homophobia / Transphobia’ – Impact on culture and arts. Peter Tatchell has agreed to be one of the key speakers.
GFEST is supported by Team London this year for the volunteers’ involvement.

For full programme and booking information please visit: http://www.gaywisefestival.org.uk

GFEST 2011 In London To Open Next Week On 7 November

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GFEST 2011 is to start the exciting artistic journey next week on the 7th November 2011. Now in its fifth year, GFEST is widely recognised as ‘London’s annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) cross-art festival for all’ . Opening up with an exciting visual arts exhibition at the Dreamspace Gallery on Monday 7 November, it will be an exciting look at the wide scope of gay arts in this country.

A still for GFEST 2011 film

Film makers, provocateurs, drag acts, lesbian hip hop artists, symphonic wind groups, anarcho electro punks and London cabaret scene stars are all participants in GFEST 2011.
GFEST 2011 short film screenings at the Prince Charles Cinema on 8, 9 and 10 November  feature Hong Khaou whose film Spring debuted at Sundance this year, Sydney based director Craig Boreham, Liane Lang and Betsy Kalin amongst others covering trends in lesbian culture, amateur boxing, transition in relationships and teenage secrets. This year the short film screenings also include award winning filmmaker Darius Clark Monroe whose film ‘Slow’ deals with a blind date and the possibility that it might bring, a documentary film by Nola Grace Gaardmand, ‘Home for the Golden Gays’ focusing on refuge for elderly and vulnerable gays in Manila since 1969 and Jason Bradbury’s ‘We Once Were Tide’.

Art work from Simon Croft

Together they cover a variety of themes ranging from discrimination and migration to gender ambiguity and homophobia across the world via one night stands and young people’s issues around sexuality!
The festival organisers are delighted to have a wide range of  artists taking part in this year’s visual arts exhibition including Jason C Woodson, Boa Swindler, Gozra Lozano, Sadie Hennessy, Deric Ch’ng , Eloquent Graffiti, Paul Chisholm, Marta Kochanek, Simon Croft, Peter A Leigh and Jan Morley amongst others.
The topical and lively debate: East London – Homophobia & Transphobia, a culture and arts perspective is on 15 November at Rich Mix in the trendy Shoreditch and Bethnal Green area.
GFEST 2011 performance artists also cover a wide range taking in the political agitation of electro punk of Ste McCabe, the Pink Singers and V G Lee who gives us her take on lesbian life in the slow lane.

Holestar

EvOn is a young lesbian rapper giving her unique spin on urban, hip-hop and soul music and GFEST 2011 also sees the return of Marcus Reeves who will be performing a selection of songs from his first decade of solo performance and his forthcoming debut album. These and many more performance events will all take place at The Cockpit Theatre in Marylebone on 17, 18 and 19 November.
GFEST 2011 arts events, debates, parties and workshops run from 7 to 20 November at venues across London.
for full programme and booking information please visit: http://www.gaywisefestival.org.uk
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GFEST – Gaywise FESTival is the premier LGBTQ annual cross-arts festival in London – a platform for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer artists. It’s produced and organised by arts charity Wise Thoughts. www.gaywisefestival.org.uk/
For more information, photo call and interviews opportunities please contact:  0208 889 9555 / info@wisethoughts.org
Wise Thoughts, established in 1999, creates dynamic arts initiatives such as GFEST and delivers services to help address social justice issues and needs of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) and Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities.

Artist behind ‘I Am NOT An Abomination’ Wishes For Peace on Earth

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Paul Chisholm is one of the selected GFEST 2011 artists. He is to showcase art work ‘I Am Not An Abomination’ at GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2011 visual arts exhibition. GFEST 2011 Visual Arts Exhibition will take place at Dreamspace Gallery , 1-3 Dufferin Street, London, EC1Y 8NA (press buzzer to enter) during Mon 7 Nov to Sat 19 Nov 9am to 5:30pm, Sat: 10am to 5pm (Sunday Closed) ENTRY FREE

We interviewed Paul to find more about himself & his practice.

I am NOT an abomination badges - endless supply

How do you see your own art or artwork?
Life for humans is far from perfect one may say we are living in Hell and are far from the pure and perfect world some would like us to believe we are living… 
I see my art work as a reflection on the unease, misunderstanding, human emotion and life’s un- ending cycles of enlightenment and regression that faces society.  

How would you describe your own practice?
My sculptures are at first glance playful and childlike but with further investigation each work has serious undertones of a world struggling to deal with its own conflicts and contradictions.

 

Paul Chisholm

Are there any external factors that help you creatively?
No man is an island or so the saying goes, no emotion is new, external factors are the magic and ephemeral nature of life its self. How can one not be both in awe and just a little scared by the World in which we live? 


How do you look at reinventing yourself or reflect progression in your work?
Reflection and reinvention are a continual cycle of creation, contemplation, procrastination and critical thinking and through these reflections my work develops into a deeper understanding of how my Art can communicate its message. 

What are the most important themes and elements that feed into your creativity?
My sexuality has of late feed deeply into my practice my work deals with Stigma, prejudice, sexuality and Living with HIV in a post 80’s /90’s crisis. However my work still holds a strong sense of whimsicality. Art should be thought provoking and challenging juxtaposed with humor, after all humor is one of the most powerful tools and Artists has to engage his the viewer. 

Can you describe the creative process behind the work and how it works for you?
The creative process is a complex web of connections, which evolve with time, and at its boiling point the concepts become reality through a variety of channels. It works for me through a sprinkle of chance, a dash of ingenuity and a whole lot of passion.  

How would you like yourself or your work to be known?
I would like my work to be known as a catalyst for change even if that change only occurs in a single person I’ve done a good job! 

Any single wish?
Peace on Earth 

Many thanks Paul and best wishes from GFEST team.
For more information on GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2011 please contact: Subodh Rathod, Wise Thoughts / GFEST – Gaywise FESTival
Tel: 020 8889 9555
info@wisethoughts.org
www.wisethoughts.org / www.gaywisefestival.org.uk
———————–
GFEST web networks: http://www.wisethoughts.org http://www.gaywisefestival.org.uk http://www.facebook.com/niranjan.kamatkar http://www.gaywisefestival.blogspot.com/ http://twitter.com/gfest http://gaywisefestival.wordpress.com/ http://www.yoursemotionally.com/ http://www.myspace.com/interviewwithapolitician http://www.flickr.com/photos/gfest/ http://www.youtube.com/user/wisethoughts http://uk.linkedin.com/in/niranjankamatkar http://www.myspace.com/gaywisefestival

GFEST 2011 Filmmaker: there is an ocean of amazing stories just waiting to be told

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Nola Gaardmand’s  film ‘Home for the Golden Gays’ is selected to show at  GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2011 Film events.  GFEST 2011 Short Film Screenings will take place at Prince Charles Cinema, 7 Leicester Place, London WC2H 7BY on Tues 8 / Wed 9 / Thus 10 Nov at 7.15 pm / Box Office: 020 74943654 /
Online: http://princecharlescinema.com

We asked Nola about her take on her film, her work and creativity in general.

Nola Grace Gaardmand

How do you see your own art or work?
I don’t really see my self as an artist. I work at a newspaper, and ‘Home for the Golden Gays (HFGG)’ is actually my first documentary. But for me, whether it’s in the daily newspaper or on film, I always try to make my readers/viewers actually identify with the ‘characters’.

How would you describe the style of your filmmaking?
I definitely take my so-called rational way of thinking from journalism with me in this documentary. Every day I try to tell rather complex stories in the most understandable way possible for my readers, and with HFGG I wanted to do the same. No fancy optical or narrative tricks, just keep it simple, and let the story speak for it’s self.

Are there any external factors that help you creatively?
What I love about journalism/documentarism is that the real world is so colourful, strange and mind-blowing – there is an ocean of amazing stories just waiting to be told. I always keep my eye out for interesting places or people.

How do you look at reinventing yourself or reflect progression in your work?
I don’t really think about that very much – I always just think, if it’s a story I would want to hear more about my self, there must be others, that would find it interesting as well. It has to touch me in some way – if it does, it’s usually home-safe.

What are the most important themes and elements that feed into your creativity?
I am very interested in telling stories about things that are some-what taboo. Which is why I often end up with stories about sexuality, gender, body-identities, etc: the secrecy evolving HIV, children’s early sexual games, black women’s shame of their natural hair, are just a few examples. When it makes me a bit uncomfortable, I know I’m doing something right for my readers/viewers.

Can you describe the creative process behind the work and how it works for you?
I usually think: how can I tell this story as simple as possible? I want my readers/viewers to be left with a feeling of having gotten close to the ‘characters’, and for me the easiest way is to let the characters speak for them selves. Nothing fancy, just up close and personal: what’s your story? Usually it’s more than enough.

How would you like yourself or your work to be known?
I want my journalism to make people recognize aspects in them selves – no matter how far-out the story. I want to find the universal emotions and issues in all stories. HFGG for example, is just as much a story about the fear of being abandoned, as it is a story about elderly gay men in Manila. I think the way to actually break down prejudices, is to make people recognize a part of them selves in other people, they usually would perceive as abnormal.

Any single wish?
World peace? Oh yeah, and to marry Obama once Michelle is done with him.

Thank you Nola for your response and best wishes from GFEST team.

For more information on GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2011 please contact: Subodh Rathod, Wise Thoughts / GFEST – Gaywise FESTival
Tel: 020 8889 9555
info@wisethoughts.org
www.wisethoughts.org / www.gaywisefestival.org.uk
———————–
GFEST web networks: http://www.wisethoughts.org http://www.gaywisefestival.org.uk http://www.facebook.com/niranjan.kamatkar http://www.gaywisefestival.blogspot.com/ http://twitter.com/gfest http://gaywisefestival.wordpress.com/ http://www.yoursemotionally.com/ http://www.myspace.com/interviewwithapolitician http://www.flickr.com/photos/gfest/ http://www.youtube.com/user/wisethoughts http://uk.linkedin.com/in/niranjankamatkar http://www.myspace.com/gaywisefestival

GFEST 2011 artist talks about ‘fevered brain and an ice-cold heart’

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Artist Sadie Hennessy is selected to showcase her art work ‘Bunny Boys 3′ at GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2011 visual arts exhibition. GFEST 2011 Visual Arts Exhibition will take place at Dreamspace Gallery , 1-3 Dufferin Street, London, EC1Y 8NA (press buzzer to enter) during Mon 7 Nov to Sat 19 Nov 9am to 5:30pm, Sat: 10am to 5pm (Sunday Closed) ENTRY FREE
GFEST team requested Sadie to respond to the queries below, to find out more about the artist and the work.

Sadie Hennessy

How do you see your own art or artwork?
My work sets out to subvert or disrupt expectations – and to comment wryly on the way the world is.

How would you describe your own practice?
My practice comes from a fevered brain and an ice-cold heart.

Are there any external factors that help you creatively?
Divorce really helped!

How do you look at reinventing yourself or reflect progression in your work?
I don’t, I just keep on (working).

What are the most important themes and elements that feed into your creativity?
Iconoclasm, absurdity, disturbance, intervention, sense of humour, fearlessness, playfulness.

Can you describe the creative process behind the work and how it works for you?
It’s a constant interior monologue rabbiting away whilst I attempt to control the domestic chaos of my exterior life.


How would you like yourself or your work to be known?

Constantly surprising.

 

Any single wish?

No single wish, they tend to come in multiples, like my work.

Thanks Sadie for that rapid and enjoyable exchange and best wishes from the GFEST team.

For more information on GFEST – Gaywise FESTival 2011 please contact: Subodh Rathod, Wise Thoughts / GFEST – Gaywise FESTival
Tel: 020 8889 9555
info@wisethoughts.org      /  www.wisethoughts.org / www.gaywisefestival.org.uk
——————-
GFEST web networks: http://www.wisethoughts.org http://www.gaywisefestival.org.uk http://www.facebook.com/niranjan.kamatkar http://www.gaywisefestival.blogspot.com/ http://twitter.com/gfest http://gaywisefestival.wordpress.com/ http://www.yoursemotionally.com/ http://www.myspace.com/interviewwithapolitician http://www.flickr.com/photos/gfest/ http://www.youtube.com/user/wisethoughts http://uk.linkedin.com/in/niranjankamatkar http://www.myspace.com/gaywisefestival

Gay Cross-arts Festival In London GFEST Celebrates Diversity

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GFEST – Gaywise FESTival in London is an annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) cross-art event in November that promises to showcase challenging art works and colourful talent from around the world. full programme on : www.gaywisefestival.org.uk

GFEST logo

Running from 7 to 20 November GFEST 2011 is a celebration of creativity and visual splendour exploring the minds and motives shaping the movement which is as artistic as it is political.
The festival includes a visual arts exhibition, short films screening, performances, workshops and debates that take place throughout venues in London. They will all engage with contemporary LGBTQ themes, challenging boundaries to tackle prejudices.
GFEST artistic director Niranjan Kamatkar is really excited about the upcoming event, “Everything this year takes you on a narrative journey that is unique, thought-provoking and thoroughly enjoyable.”
In the visual arts showcase at Dreamspace Gallery, artists such as Paul Chisholm, Wendy Elia and Simon Croft

At Last!

will make bold statements, celebrate the unexpectedness of gay marriage and explore gender identity using a Russian doll.

Trunks

This year short film screenings includes award winning filmmaker Darius Clark Monroe whose film ‘Slow’ deals with a blind date and the possibility that it might bring, a documentary film by Nola Grace Gaardmand, ‘Home for the Golden Gays’ focussing on refuge for elderly and vulnerable gays in Manila since 1969 and Jason Bradbury’s ‘We Once Were Tide’ which looks at Anthony and Kyle spending their last night together before Kyle moves away, leaving Anthony to look after his terminally ill mother.

London Gay Symphonic Winds

The third key area of this cross-art festival includes performances from Naechanè Valentino, EvOn Musicbully, stand up comedy from VG Lee and Janice Perry and Ezra Axelrod who takes the audiences on a musical journey through gay love, lust, heartbreak and reconciliation.
GFEST 2011 will also see some topical and lively debates, artist workshops and events that will take place in venues across London throughout the festival.
Full programme details and information about GFEST 2011 is available on http://www.gaywisefestival.org.uk
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For more information, photography, in-depth stories or to arrange an interview with the artists or Niranjan Kamatkar, Artistic Director of GFEST 2011, please contact: Subodh Rathod, Wise Thoughts / GFEST Tel: 020 8889 9555
info@wisethoughts.org
www.wisethoughts.org / www.gaywisefestival.org.uk
—————-
About GFEST
GFEST – Gaywise Festival is the premier LGBTQ annual cross-arts festival in London – a platform for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer artists. It’s produced and organised by arts charity Wise Thoughts and is the brainchild of Wise Thoughts’ Artistic Director Niranjan Kamatkar.
Wise Thoughts, established in 1999, creates dynamic arts initiatives such as GFEST and delivers services to help address social justice issues and needs of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) and Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities.
Wise Thoughts projects support community cohesion and aim to inform, raise awareness and promote socio – cultural diversity using arts as a key tool to engender social change. We work strategically with other statutory and voluntary organisations to help attain these objectives. We work locally (in Haringey and North London), regionally (London and the South East), nationally and internationally depending upon the nature of each project.
GFEST is now in its 5th year and this year it runs from 7 to 20 November in venues throughout London showcasing new and established artists and arts organisations from around the world.
The visual arts exhibition takes place from 7 to 19 November at the Dreamspace Gallery near The Barbican.
The short films section takes place from 8 – 10 November at the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square.
The performance section runs from 17-19 November at the Cockpit Theatre in Marylebone.
The debate: East London – Homophobia & Transphobia, a culture and arts perspective is on 15 November at Rich Mix in Shoreditch / Bethnal Green.
Events, debates and workshops run from 7 to 20 November at the above venues as well as  West Thames College, Gay’s the Word, MOSAIC Youth Centre and Ku Bar