So last Sunday night in Orange Rooms was special. For those that don’t know it; Orange is the jewel of Southampton’s prestigious Bedford Place crown. When you head there, you expect the usual hustle, bustle and dancefloor antics but tonight really felt a little bit different.
Seeing a stage full of hip hop performers as you walk through the doors is not unique or unexpected in Orange Rooms or even Southampton. However, the live spectacle of creative energy on display tonight would likely be a first time experience for anyone. The interaction of Live art London painting a canvas to music in motion with seamstress Ieva Poriete sat at the sewing machine, plugging away, singing to the lyrics and dancing along to the music, is a very unique and entertaining tour de force. Musical accompaniment comes in the form of several upcoming local music artists like Shannon Baker and Daniel Eagle all contributing to the Riskology Karma album launch. It was this impromptu choreography that had me thinking I had walked into a music video being filmed live. Indeed, there were camera crew to support this theory.
However, on closer inspection after a conversation with the night’s promoter, Mr J Fashole the event operated on a deeper artistic level.
So the artist painting the canvas has the medical condition synesthesia, where the person can see noise in colours and thus reconstructs this sensation in a visual, artistic context. Then the seamstress takes the content of that canvas and expresses it in the form of clothing. The process resting as a backdrop amid the live music is entertaining enough but as the event goes on, the synchronicity of the varying mediums of art begins to combine into some sort of cathartic circus. At first seemingly chaotic and divided but coming together to work under one huge narrative of expression.
I would say this effort gives Orange Rooms an almost bohemian glow tonight, slowly acquiring their own Arthouse credentials that will put them up there with… well, the Arthouse.
Disclaimer: The soundtrack to the video above was not a live recording from the album launch and added from Riskology’s Soundcloud, due to technical difficulties recording live.
Rant &Rave 