Tim Etchells' selfportrait
Beeldspoor is the Rotterdamse Schouwburg’s art gallery. The idea was thought up at the opening of the building by architect Wim Quist and the then director Carel Alons.
Every year 3 artists are commissioned to make a piece – inspired by theatre – on an aluminium sheet of 90 x 105 cm.
Starting from the idea of a portrait gallery I proposed making a portrait of a theatre-artist who has been an inspiration to me as a visual artist.
I chose Tim Etchells, artistic director of the British theatre group Forced Entertainment. Especially his personal performances have influenced the way I think about the relationship between theatre and visual art.
I went to London, together with Rotterdam’s portrait photographer Tamar de Kemp.
I asked Tim to give me a description of his own portrait, in the classic portrait tradition with a bared upper body.
While looking in a mirror he typed his description of head and shoulders into a laptop.
Tamar photographed his portrait in the same lighting conditions.
Using a soft pencil I wrote Tim’s description on a large print of his portrait, all the texts in the right place and the right size and direction.
I wrote a list of stray thoughts and observations in the space next to the portrait.
year | 2008 |
location | Rotterdamse Schouwburg Rotterdam NL |
brief description | Tim Etchells’ textual description of his own portrait, written on a print of his portrait photograph. |
curator | commission Beeldspoor |
photography | Portrait of Tim Etchells: Tamar de Kemp, Photograph of the work: Tom Kroes |
project or event | Beeldspoor, the art gallery of De Rotterdamse Schouwburg |
materials | graphite on c-print by Ernst Dinkla, on paper on alluminium |
size | 90 x 110 cm |