STEPHEN FOWLER EXHIBITION

My friend Stephen Fowler is about to have a new exhibition - this time at The Horse Hospital. Let's hope I make it to the opening on Friday without having to stand outside 'in the fresh air' and lean on a car because I was worried I would pass out and die from too much drinking the night before, then end up at Tsouni's birthday by accident with a bottle of Lucozade in my hand and end up playing musical statues til 5 in the morning watching Amph and Alex T wrestle in their socks. [Like I did and the last one...]

The Chamber of Pop Culture Is Proud To
Present:

'Instead of wives, they shall have toads" 
An exhibition by Stephen Fowler

Exhibition
Saturday 5th July - Saturday 26th July, 12-6pm
Mon-Sat 
Private View Friday 4th July, 6.30pm till late

The artist will be in residence on Thursday, Friday
& Saturday of each
week.



Stephen Fowler is a Folk Artist of extraordinary complexity, who over the past 5 years has created a vast body of work illustrating a deep emotional journey of personal identity. Discovering Fowler's work is literally like leafing through the pages of a giant eclectic scrapbook, which at first glance could have been created half a century ago, Fowler's multifarious practice embraces many traditional crafts, forgotten techniques and skills that belong to bygone age, drawing freely from the worlds of Dada, Surrealism, Constructivism, Abstract Expressionism, Outsider Art and Steam Punk to create his own diverse and rich aesthetic.

From naïve paintings of remote architecture, places of worship and hospitals, to moving portraits of troubled individuals, plant life and shell fish, Fowler presents us with a chronicle of assorted drawings, paintings, prints, posters, intricate handmade bookworks, leaflets, flyers, badges, sculptures, found objects and ephemera which reflect his various obsessions for graphics, poetry, old records, photographs, film.

"Instead of wives, they shall have toads" puts forth a meloncholy and playful world engendered carefully and lovingly 
by this sensitive artist. 

Fowler is well known for his creative collaboration with: The Murri Folk Club, Tapestry Music Festival, Tatty Devine, Zeel, Mark Pawson, Rob Ryan & Rocky Alvarez.

To accompany the exhibition there will be a programme of film and live music events. Curated by the artist.

FILM NIGHTS +
EVENTS

Wednesday 9th
July, 7.30pm
£5-£4 mems/concs 
We Have No
Art 
1967 26 minutes 
+
Mary's Day 
1964 12
minutes
Two documentaries on the Artist, Teacher, Nun; Sister
Corita. 
+
Danielson: A Family Movie (or, Make a Joyful
Noise HERE)
2006 105 minutes
Starring Danielson Famile & Sufjan Stevens with cameos from Steve Albini, Rick Moody, David Garland and DANIEL JOHNSTON.

Tuesday 15th
July 7:30pm
£5-£4 mems/concs
Charlie Chan at the Wax Museum 
Directed by Lynn Shores
1940 B/W 66 minutes
Wax figures, hidden rooms, secret passage ways and pelting rain.
Sidney Toler stars as Charlie Chan in this claustrophobic museum setting.
+
The Bat Whispers 
Directed by Roland
West
B/W 83 minutes 1930
An old dark house melodrama.

Friday 25th July
7:30pm
£7/£5 members & concessions 

Home Made Record Sleeve Performance
(D.Js Nervous Stephen and Rocky play records from 'Home made records sleeves volumes 1 and 2' books, as corresponding record sleeves are projected). 
+
William Fowler Band 
(Post Barrett Space Folk)
Monogram
(Old Timey tunes)
The Country Teasers
(The Fall meets The Carter Family)


The Chamber of Pop Culture - "SERVING UP POPCULTURE FOR 15 YEARS
The Horse Hospital - Colonnade - Bloomsbury - London - WC1N 1HX
phone 44(0)207 833 3644
The Horse Hospital

xx Emma

'NERVOUS' STEPHEN FOWLER

I am definitely going to this.

xx Emma

The Secret After Party

Yesterday was my first day working as shopgirl in Shop At Maison Bertaux - only it didn't feel like working cause Michelle from Maison Bertaux kept running down to check I was okay and bringing me some gorgeous asparagus quiche for lunch and tea and coffee through the day. My new friend Lauren dropped in to see me [she was modelling for Katharine Hamnett through the week and that is how I met her] and DJ Mollywood called in as well. Loads of customers came in just to check out the new boutique and I was marvelling with everyone about the concrete door on the fitting room. It is an Eley Kishimoto frill print on a sheet of concrete screwed to the door - and while girls were trying stuff on in the fitting room, their blokes and I were on the outside of the door saying "How does that work? The concrete is only about 8mm thick and those screws are near the edge. Why doesn't it crumble??"

As promised, here is the video from the afterparty, heavily edited I have to say ;) - but starring in order of appearance:
Pippa - Business woman, playboy model and super DJ [who can't see]
Crowd - Fiona from Eley Kishimoto is the one with the headband
Nervous Stephen and Paul B. Davis - Nervous Stephen played the marching band music!
Abbie and Lee - girls from Lektrolab
Lucy - Her wig has a name and cost £14.99. She also told Mark Eley he smells of lettuce. You won't meet a funnier girl.
Paul Frecker - He deals antique photos and looks like the people in the antique pictures.
Mo and Jo - I just like that their names rhyme. Mo is a great Italo DJ and Jo Apps sang for Venetian Snare amongst others.
Max, Paul Long and Tania - Max is a business man and Playboy! Paul Long is the man responsible for the refit of the new boutique and Tania is part of the family running Maison Bertaux.
Paul B. D. - spinning
Paul L. - spinning [a yarn]
Chris O.C. - telling it like it is [and check the tattoos]
Alex - Gorgeous!
Pippa - keeping cool - but you should have seen her later dancing to "I've got a loverly bunch of coconuts"
Nervous Stephen and Me - discussing DJ or Print Gocco machines
Max and Mo
Katrina - our Saturday girl who is going back to Australia soon
Max - his turn on the decks
Paul Gorman and his lady - Paul wrote "The Look" and his lady is also from Australia. You should have seen these two going for it when Pippa played Ying Yang Twins!!
Paul B.D. - it was a long night...

xx Emma

Videos and Secrets

Well I told you that there would be some video from the party and here it is! This is the first night I have had a chance to check out what Chris O.C. recorded on my DV camera. Chris only managed to record 5 minutes worth at the beginning of the party. I guess the bottle of Whiskey he hid under the turntables along with the fact he was lovin' the party may have had something to do with forgetting later on...
This is just from the first half of the party that took place at the official opening in the new room next door to Maison Bertaux and of course Shop At Maison Bertaux underneath. Michelle from Maison Bertaux served champagne and little strawberry and fruit tartlets la famille de Maison Bertaux had prepared earlier that day.

I'm not sure I can post the video from the "secret" after party at Soho House anywhere online! I'm going to have to show it to Max and Pippa first cause it is pretty mental. A brief description: First Max, Pippa and Paul B. Davis played a ping pong DJ set. Then Nervous Stephen [of red bearded fame] played a weirdo set of carousel music, square dancing and old English pub songs. Everyone in Soho House went insane and were dancing to bongo and brass bands like they all didn't have to get up early the next day [I for one had to get up at 7am to be at London Fashion Week at the Natural History Museum... but that is another story.] It was like everyone was getting more and more revved up - like wind up toys all about to burst a spring. Then the staff at Soho House had a word with Mark Eley and asked us to leave. Mark made a big declaration, "We've been kicked out from our own party for having too much fun!! Come on!! We're all going to Trisha's!!!" And so they all did. [FYI - Trisha's is the basement bar "somewhere in Soho". Or maybe it should be called a drinking den? I don't know - but it is a fabulous place. Pippa had her last birthday party there.] I did not go to Trisha's and nor did Pippa but we sent each other a text along the lines of "I'm SO tired" and something about champagne.

That's enough from me. I got to get up for work tomorrow.

x Emma