Henry Bradley
Henry Bradley (b.1991) is an artist based in London working at the intersection of video, theatre and performance. His work looks at the construction of contemporary subjectivity through hyper-individualism, language and pedagogy. He completed an MA at the Centre for Research Architecture, Goldsmiths University, (2015-17). Recent exhibitions and residencies include, ‘Requiem For A Failed State’, HALLE14, Centre for Contemporary Art, Leipzig, 2018; ’WHO CARES?’, Gate/Porta, Ferrara, 2017; ‘Belligerent Eyes’, Fondazione Prada, Venice, 2016; and ‘A Public Hearing’, Arts Catalyst Gallery, London, 2016 (collaboration). He is currently a recipient of the Jerwood Visual Arts ‘Artist Bursary Award’.
GLOSSOLALIA
Set on a single stage, GLOSSOLALIA parallels a method acting class in which actors are trained to access and utilise their unconscious, alongside an Accent Softening Course for Business, whereby foreign workers learn the 'Standard English' accent to help further their careers in the UK. Interspersed throughout are a series of scenes, including children learning phonics, that further question our relationships to language and pedagogy.
Situating itself amidst the current divisive politics and rhetoric, the architecture of the stage is used to produce a microcosm of contemporary Britain in turbulent times. Through these different scenarios that predominantly train the voice, a visceral encounter with language, and its role within within contemporary capitalism and the wider human condition, begins to form. Furthermore, structured into 19 nonlinear acts, traversing fact and fiction, the film locates itself between the formats of a documentary, a play and a piece of cinema.
UKYA PROJECTS:
UKYA City Takeover: Nottingham 2019
