Join us as the artist discusses the themes and ideas behind their current Phoenix Gallery exhibition Life Could Be Done So Much Better with curator Lisa Slominski. Introduced by Phoenix Gallery curator Matt Burrows.

About James Paddock:

James Paddock is a visual artist working in installation and film who uses his lived experience as a Voice Hearer to create insightful fictional dialogues about living with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. He is based in Southampton, UK.

About Lisa Slominski:

Lisa Slominski is an American writer, curator & researcher based in East London. Her work explores activations of access and inclusion in the current contemporary art discourse and examines the historical framework of underrepresented artists with a particular interest in agency.

ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

A solo exhibition of new video and installation works by artist James Paddock who explores the reality of Voice Hearing to create an insightful dialogue about his experience of living with a diagnosis of “schizophrenia”.

The centrepiece of the exhibition is an operatic video, “Mirrored to the Core”, a love story about two young Voice Hearers whose telepathic dialogue is represented through song.

An adjacent installation, “A duo becomes a quartet”, is inspired by the artist’s experience of mental illness treatment. It includes a new film that tells the story of two Voice Hearers who have been sectioned under the Mental Health Act, alongside a series of T-shirts printed with slogans reflecting on Voice Hearers’ experiences and on how things could be improved.

Find out more about the exhibition >>

VENUE: EXETER PHOENIX, STUDIO 74