sonic baby at ArtPlay and beyond
i love ArtPlay!
rare is the opportunity to imagine with others
to try out ideas
to push the boundaries
to fail
and try again
in the world of art, artists and children
this is what ArtPlay enabled me to do with
sonic baby
Calling All Babies
a series of workshops at ArtPlay
facilitated by Jen Anderson
and along with
Heidi Wetherall and Ben Goodes
we imagined and created arts based experiences
for pre-language and pre-walking babies from 4 months old
read about my
sonic baby workshops here
a BIG thanks to Jeany from ArtPlay
for her technical knowledge and support
reflections on the sonic baby workshops
in the ArtPlay setting:
the difference between workshop and experiment
sonic baby workshops 1 and 2
were highly experimental in nature
(unwittingly they were more of an experiment than a workshop)
i realise that there were too many unknown elements
for me to create a workshop environment
of sharing some of my skills and knowledge
of creating an experience for parents and babies to share together
to take something new away with them
as an experiment they were highly successful...
i learnt a lot
i changed my thinking
i developed more questions
i discovered many small moments
and the participants provided insights that would not have been possible without them
as workshops they were lousy!
of course this was not my intention
much of what i had supposed might happen just did not
for a variety of reasons, technical and otherwise.
(i apologise again here to the parents and babies who bravely took part.
i can only hope that you experienced a small moment, a moment of awareness, a moment of joy or a consciousness of being present with your baby that may have made your journey into ArtPlay that day worthwhile... and to ArtPlay thanks for inviting me back!)
with time between the fist two workshops and the second two
and with the insight provided by the failed sonic baby workshop
(and the rich discoveries of the sonic baby experiment)
i wildly re-imagined sonic baby
but maintained the central ideas and framework
firstly i realised that the parents coming to ArtPlay
were coming to a workshop
they had not signed up for an experiment
there is a difference
participants in an experiment
knowingly enter into an experience
which may or may not work
it is the process and the journey
that is of interest
not knowing how things will turn out
is central to an experimental process
if sonic baby had been an experiment
that we all entered into knowingly
the parents would have been part of the discovery
which could have been a richer experience for us all
experiments are vital
but in the ArtPlay setting this time around
sonic baby was a workshop
for the second two workshops
my major rethinking was around
space
sound and
image
i recreated the space
redesigned the sound
and rethought the image
to create a more controlled theatrical experience
did it work?
as a workshop this was not the forum
to delve into the experience for the parents and babies
so i really can't say
my observations suggest that a sense of theatre was created
a heightened sense of reality
which may have resonated back out in the real world
my feeling is that at least some of the parents
took away a consciousness of the sonic world
we all share with babies
ArtPlay are providing further opportunity
to explore baby workshops
with Jen, Heidi, Ben and others
GREAT!
i will be running another workshop in November
LIGHT SHADOW BABY
sonic baby at ArtPlay
was the first step
i am compelled to continue to investigate this work
inspired by the work of great artists
Chiara Guidi and
Sally Chance
and inspired by babies
who provide
insights into what it is to be human
and compel us to
be present in the world
to listen and see and feel
after the complete series of 4 sonic baby workshops
some of my questions are:
who is this work for?
what do the babies get out of it?
what do the parents get of it?
my thinking so far...
the experience is aimed at adults
but also engages babies
a heightened theatrical experience of the everyday
i am working towards creating
theatre for adults and their babies
an inclusive theatrical experience
the babies main benefit will be back in the real world
in the theatre of the everyday
experienced
with their parents
who will bring some of their heightened
theatrical experience of the everyday
into the everyday
as for experiments
i am working towards entering into
shared experiential space with
babies and artist parents PITA
to develop ideas further
to delve into the experiences of the parents and babies
with time to reflect and discuss
sonic baby is the germ of
pita ART
parents in the arts
artists and babies
engaged in exploring ideas in open artistic dialogue
a creative development process
to create art
