A Constitution of Iron 2017 (Stills)
The precarious existence of creative workers reliant upon platforms such as ‘gig economies’ was explored through performance conversant with the material structure of a traditional school of art (a purpose built, 19th Century, red brick building).
In dialogue with the life casts in situ around the school - bodies hang, drape and balance precariously upon the architectural fabric of the institution.
The historical school of art in Birmingham is a protected structure, known to have a caveat within its deeds: that the structure should never be used for any purpose other than for art education. The title of the work references a quote by the 19th Century art critic, John Ruskin - who points out that the iron which makes red our terracotta clay building bricks is the same mineral which flows through our own blood: lecturing that ‘we cannot even blush without its help'.
Filmed on location at Birmingham School of Art, UK. Camera: Neil O'Driscoll. Performer: Shelley Eva Haden.
