Odyssean
Unusual artist residencies on Orkney

In 2015 Unit 7 took 5 UK artists to Orkney to carry out unusual residencies in the landscape, including; a lighthouse, a beach on a golf course, and a bothy full of climbers.
We worked with the Pier Arts Centre, Orkney Islands Council, RSPB, The Papay Ranger and others, to site artists in unsual places and create presentations on Papay and at the Pier Arts Centre.

In 2016 4 of the group returned for a group residency at the Kelp Store on Papay.

In 2017 work produced on the residency and subsequently finally shows at the Hestercombe Gallery in South West England.

The project was kindly supported by the Orkney Islands Council- Culture Fund, and the Hestercombe show has been supported by the Gane Trust.

Natasha Rosling

Mill Point- Papa Westray

A maker of audio works, large-scale installations and public interventions that deal with the intriguing or unsettling ways in which we inhabit (or fail to inhabit) our body and its outer landscapes. Peeling back the skin of specific sites and situations, each work seeks to deconstruct the boundary between inner and outer worlds, and the entanglement of present physical space with personal and culturally mediated memories.

www.natasharosling.com

Błażej Marczak

The Island of Wyre

A photographer whose practice focuses on portraiture as well as social landscapes, mainly within the urban environment. Adopting a simple visual language to express complex circumstances, Marczak is curious about people's stories, history and about specific conditions we are living in.

www.bmarczak.com

Simon Lee Dicker

Rackwick Bothy- Hoy

Not so much a maker of stuff as a maker of change, he is interested in how art can connect people and ideas, changing the way we think and act. From intimate drawings and transient installations to event based social activities, each work is the start of a conversation, often exploring the paradox of being both in and of the natural world.

www.simonleedicker.co.uk

Alistair Grant

Links of Moclett- Papa Westray

Grant has recently moved from investigating the fertile and elusive notions around wild(er)'ness into the new thematic frontiers of space and science-fiction. In this shift however he finds himself asking similar questions. Through his art he puts himself in these backdrops and in doing so uses his own presence as a lens for illuminating humanities place and intentions within these respective environments.

www.ahgrant.co.uk

Alexander Stevenson

The Stevenson Lighthouse- North Ronaldsay

Stevenson mines information using processes usually associated with anthropologists, historians and researchers to create artworks, journeys and films. Huge fabric sculptures, live theatrical performances and narratives generated from remote locations are just some of the outcomes of these interests. The work is informed by knowledge systems; how history is made and re-made through storytelling, objects and activities.

www.alexanderstevenson.com

All images on this site are copyright of the artists, and may not be used or reproduced without permission.