Bibby G., The Drumhead, If I Can’t Dance I Don’t Want To Be Part Of Your Revolution, Sternberg Press, Kunsthaus Bregenz ARENA, CCA Glasgow, The Showroom, Institute of Modern Art Brisbane, 2014
- The Drumhead, Gerry Bibby’s first fiction work, was commissioned by If I Can’t Dance for Edition V – Appropriation and Dedication (2013–2014), and follows a two-year collaboration with KUB Arena of the Kunsthaus Bregenz, The Showroom London, CCA Glasgow, and the Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane. The book distills these institutional encounters into a multipart narrative that delves into the lives and psyches of those in the service industry. We meet Gina, a performance artist facing the truths about her audience, and Guy, a police agent infiltrating political subculture. Exhaustion and frustration besiege a set of characters and the architecture that barely contains them.The DrumheadBy Gerry BibbyEdited by Natasha Soobramanien, Vivian ZiherlDesigned by HITDistribution by Sternberg PressPublished by If I Can’t Dance I Don’t Want To Be Part Of Your Revolution, Sternberg Press, Kunsthaus Bregenz ARENA, CCA Glasgow, The Showroom, Institute of Modern Art Brisbane, 2014ISBN: 978-3-95679-065-2The Drumhead inaugurates a world of pure presence- (un)scrupulously amalgamating sexual politics, right-wing deliriums, and contemporary art. With all its obscurities and anxieties, this novel represents Bibby’s ultimate artistic statement.— Henrik OlesenThe bastard offspring of J.G. Ballard and Severo Sarduy. Consecrated within a novel religion under the (anti-) authority of goddess Kathy Acker.— Gregg BordowitzWritten in just six months, in six cities, in the space between three shows, The Drumhead is an urgent, furious and poetic response to the state we’re in. Drawing on news articles, training manuals, scientific reports and the influence of other radical writers, Bibby distills these texts to offer us something utterly compelling.— Natasha Soobramanien
The Drumhead, Gerry Bibby’s first fiction work, was commissioned by If I Can’t Dance for Edition V – Appropriation and Dedication (2013–2014), and follows a two-year collaboration with KUB Arena of the Kunsthaus Bregenz, The Showroom London, CCA Glasgow, and the Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane. The book distills these institutional encounters into a multipart narrative that delves into the lives and psyches of those in the service industry. We meet Gina, a performance artist facing the truths about her audience, and Guy, a police agent infiltrating political subculture. Exhaustion and frustration besiege a set of characters and the architecture that barely contains them.
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BOOK LAUNCH & READINGS
10, 15 and 27 November 2015The Drumhead
Gerry BibbyPoint Centre for Contemporary Art, Cyprusperformance days
27 November–3 December 2014Performance Days
Gerry Bibby, Sara van der Heide, Snejanka Mihaylova, Emily Roysdon, Gregg Bordowitz, Jacob Korczynski, Sven Lütticken, Grant Watson, and other guests to be announcedIf I Can't Dance at Ruysdaelkade 2, Amsterdam
