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Artist Profile - James Brady

Leachta gritstone - Peak District Great End
Runes

At the core of all my work lies a search for some kind of spiritual order and meaning in nature, however elusive or ambiguous it may be.

By using the new media of low resolution digital video I seek to re-work the canonical imagery commonly associated with the tradition of Romantic landscape painting of the 18th and 19th centuries. Although these works have their roots in this art historical tradition they are intended to operate consciously and critically within the contemporary ideology of the new Environmental movement.

A fundamental aspect to my practice is the act of walking which allows me to explore landscapes and physically engage with their environments. I make low-impact, site-specific earthworks with organic materials I encounter en-route.

These earthworks are ephemeral - some may exist for days or even weeks - some for only a few minutes, or even seconds. Such works are documented photographically.

Apart from my practice as a visual artist, I'm the Curator of Gaia Project - an independent artist-led environmental arts organisation, based in Merseyside. I see my curatorial practice (or what I prefer to call 'exhibition making') as an extension, or other element of my artwork.

Information on previous Gaia Project activity (during Biennial Independents 08) can be found at http://urban-ecology-liverpool.wetpaint.com

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