Beamer 3

The Academy Gallery is dim, lit only by the projection of films of diverse shapes and forms, on ceilings, high walls, on glass, on 3-D objects...The first impression is of an Aladdin's cave, an eclectic mix of colour and sensation, and I am keen to take the time to look more closely. 

Luckily, as it is quiet, I have an opportunity to chat to Georgina Porteous, installation artist and Moray College Fine Art graduate. She takes the time to show me round and talk me through the various  pieces, which bring together works by well-established names as well as artists at the beginning of their careers. 

gallery plan

Frames per Second: Graham Roger, Chris Bird, Dave Martin

One of the most arresting works is Frames per Second, a film installation by artists Graham Roger and Chris Bird, with sound by Dave Martin. The pieces weaves together photography, film and sound, and is projected onto a wall of glass resin blocks made by Tain glassworks arranged on the floor. Footage combining domestic and natural imagery has been edited to run simultaneously. The effect is technically intriguing and colourful, but also provokes thoughts about concurrent lives and places, and the impact of digital imagery and technology on our experience of time. 

Ailsa Robertson

Opposite this vibrant colour is a more subdued collection of film, including work by Dundee artist, Cordelia Underhill, Porteous herself, Ailsa Robertson (Moray College graduate now working in London) and Scottish film-maker Dan Shay.The work is projected in a circle through a pane of textured acrylic, emphasising the tone and pattern of the footage. The soundtrack to Robertson's natural imagery of snowy trees includes the howling of wolves.  This oblique presentation creates a calming, impressionistic play of light and sound, rather than dwelling on meaning. 
 

Caroline Bury: Untitled

Caroline Bury describes her practice as 'experimental and dark with a humorous twist, using unusual or unexpected materials'. The disembodied head on the gallery floor, onto which grotesquely moving features are projected, is indeed part horror, part humour. In a similar vein of self-referential portraiture, a film series on the outer wall features a rather disturbing monologue by Camilla Brody about attractiveness (Possibility to Love), and slightly  Bjorkish footage of Selena Kuzman stepping through a range of natural habitats dressed as a white stag, with large white antlers. Also in this space is the first of two Micheal O'Connell (aka Mocksim) pieces, Recay 2008, featuring the voice of John Peel. London-based Mocksim's  surreal animation work investigates everyday functional processes, attempting to re-understand through tinkering with systems and inventing new routines and procedures. His key interest is in 'the mediation of human relationships through technology, its curious dynamics, feedback loops and ritualistic aspects'. The work is both intriguing and clever.

Against the far wall is running a psychedelic sequence by John McGeoch (Artsinmotion), created as a visual for a music concert. While it could work well with a live band, it feels a little too obviously computer-generated.

Sandro Kopp: skype painting

A more engaging work is Sandro Kopp's film of skype painting. The ongoing interaction between painter and subject on the split screen speaks as much about our timeless capacity to connect emotionally across time, place and race as about the wonders of modern technology.

Kopp shares the projector with the second of Mocksim's short loop films or 'simupoems' - a crumpling till receipt entitled Live Well. It is a simple but poignant commentary on life and consumerism. 

Porteous is clearly passionate about how film can connect people. She says, 'The Beamer Nights Project is a fusion of my practice as it relates to my passion for film, archive and site specific installation.  My curation of these expositions brings people together to create and celebrate projections in all its forms. This is done by facilitating original conversations and connections by triggering the widely diverse memories of people’s life experience.' 

This stimulaing show is as much a testament to Porteous' determination and hard work (she has Crowdfunded for the Beamer series), as to her enthusiasm. Given the quality of these works, they could have benefited from a little more space in a larger gallery. But it is refreshing to see new and established artists together, and this is an exciting mix.


Beamer 3 is the latest of Georgina Porteous's Beamer series, running at the Academy Gallery, Moray School of Art in Elgin from 14 March to 4 April. For more information see http://www.beamer.me.uk/