In The Evening PostThu 14th Feb 2008
The best of Bristol’s new art and music are being showcased in an exhibition at Paintworks next week. Hinky Punk is a collaboration between Migoi-Music and Style88. It intends to bring the burgeoning underground music and arts scene to a new audience, raising the profile of all the emerging artists taking part. Some 18 artists will be showing a variety of work, from photography, painting, illustration and installation. And DJs Bitfunk, Pete Daisy and Obiwon will be among those providing the soundtrack. Hinky Punk is the first physical exhibition for Style88. The online organisation has been running since 2005 as a commission-free platform for emerging artists. All they have to do is pay a £1 upload fee to get their work included in Style88’s virtual gallery. The concept flourished in its first year, but co-founder, Bisco, says the art requires the personal touch. “We’re moving on to the exhibition event because that (virtual) network is not real. When you’re online it’s faceless. In terms of being a successful artist, you need the art in front of you. “It’s nice to have a menu, which is what our website can work as, but I think it’s important to retain that physical element, because art is a very tactile thing.” Similarly, James Bridgeman from Migoi-Music thinks the Internet is no substitute for the humble CD. “Obviously there are Internet sites where you people can put their mixes online and there’s MySpace. But our ethos is that it’s nice to have something physical in your hand.” And that’s where Migoi-Music comes in. Migoi-Music provides a subscription to a quarterly CD for relatively unknown underground DJs. Their first release is out in April, and will be available to buy at HinkyPunk. The resulting collaboration between Migoi-Music and Style88 will be a four-day party, featuring an open day on Thursday, February 21. Nailsworth folk band, Lairy Fairies, will be performing, accompanied by James as his DJ alias, Bitfunk. More DJs, including Brighton’s Glitter Sisters and Pete Daisy from Stroud, will be playing on the Saturday night, which is the official Migoi-Music launch night. It’s the emphasis on local talent that, according to Bisco, is the key to both the music and artistic elements of the event. “Both projects have their artists at the forefront, really., that’s the driving force behind it. And that’s certainly a theme that we’re very keen on developing.” Bristol’s underground arts scene, he says, is “thriving”. And it’s a force that fellow Style88 organiser, is keen to harness. “I want to push the idea that it’s not just London that can produce good bodies of work, good concepts and good shows. I was working in Cardiff before, at another gallery, and it was very much trying to show that art can be done elsewhere and very efficiently.” And she’s not the only one. The exhibition has former students from London’s Royal College of Art and even the capital recognises the wealth of talent developing in the West Hinky Punk is on at Paintworks, Bath Road, from Wednesday, February 20, to Saturday, February 23. Open daily, noon to 6pm. Admission is free. Work by Blaize Anderson, left, Luke Night, top, and Laura Hornblower, above, will be among those featured |
