THE LABBODY WORKSHOP: TOOLS, FOLDS, ROLLS & FRAMES

Whilst the galleries at CCA Derry~Londonderry are closed, whatsthebigmistry – aka Priya Mistry – is working in the spaces as artist in residence. Priya’s practice crosses disciplines, drawing from performance, dance, live, visual art and also works digitally. Priya frequently makes provocations and adds discourse at the intersection of mental health, invisible dis/ability, Identity, POC, Queer and Feminist politics. She deconstructs language whilst exploring sensory/non-word based vocabularies and frequently works in dialogue and exchange with artists, creatives, audiences, publics and communities.

Priya’s invitation to CCA was inspired by her work Intimate Conversations with Furniture (2018), in which the artist did duets ‘broken bodies of furniture’. This series was an improvisation with ‘incomplete’ household furniture such as tables missing legs, and ladders without steps as a commentary and exploration on the social mode of dis-ability. What happens when a part is missing? Is it still functional? Maybe we need to change the way we function for it to work? Maybe we’re looking at it all wrong and it’s the world that needs to change not the bodies in it. For Priya’s practice, the process of making and experimenting is far more significant than producing work to be presented in a gallery setting.

At CCA, Priya’s starting point is a response to Jan McCullough’s body of work Tricks of the Trade currently installed in the galleries. Tricks of the Trade explores spaces of construction through sculptural installation, referencing elements found in workshops, garages, factory floors and shed with their improvised ladders, offcuts and storage solutions. Priya’s work will unfold over the coming weeks and whilst we cannot invite visitors into CCA during the pandemic restrictions, you can follow Priya’s activity via social media @ccadld and @whatsthebigmistry. For Priya the process is the work.

On the last weekend of Priya’s residency at CCA, our staff gathered in the gallery with the artist and posed questions about her practice and the time spent in Derry~Londonderry. Read the transcript of this here.