Profile
Jim Aitchison
2023
Jim Aitchison works in visual art and music, as artist and composer. His work is concerned with intersections, divisions, and the uncertain correspondences between these domains, though some of the work resides emphatically in visual aspects of landscapes and built exteriors and interiors, sometimes abstracted, sometimes with figures. The visual spaces are internally devised, not particularly representations of external places, but engaging with the latter does inform the result. He works largely on paper with oil pastels, and various other media, making use of processes of extended transformation (elaboration, palimpsest, blurring, layering, scaping off, sgraffito etc.), sometimes of quoted material, with significant aspects of chance used, often exploring the conflict between aspirations toward ‘pure’ structure against expressive affect. Many of his approaches are informed by his projects as a composer with artists including John Hoyland, Doris Salcedo, Antony Gormley, Gerhard Richter, Anselm Kiefer and most recently, James Turrell.
1995 UCE, P.G.C.E (Music)
1991 – 1994 Nottingham University, AMusM composition
1989 – 1991 Nottingham University, BA MusHons, music
Selected Activity and Outputs 2017 – 2021
2021: Fermata music and visual arts festival 2021, Kensington and Chelsea Art Week: selected artworks shown.
2020: ‘Eight Panels for Rolf Hind’, written for British pianist Rolf Hind, performed online.
2020: ‘Contrapunctus’, video art, shown by The Social Distancing Festival, Toronto.
2019: Tremenheere Gallery: selected artworks shown.
Selected Activity and Outputs 2014 – 2017
2017: ‘Fanfare for Caro’, Lecture for the Salisbury Festival at the New Art Centre, Roche Court Sculpture Park, and selected artworks shown.
2017: ‘(Ensembles) Together and Apart’. Performance, work on paper, and film installation of new work in response to Richard Serra’s Verb List (1966/67), at Kestle Barton Gallery, commissioned and performed by new music ensemble Kevos, with support from Arts Council England.
2017: premiere of ‘Sea of Music’, responding to Sir Anthony Caro’s ‘Sea Music’ sculpture in Poole Harbour in Dorset, commissioned by The New Art Centre, Roche Court Sculpture Park, Salisbury, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.
2016: ‘5 Rorschach Inventions (after Peter Randall-Page)’, commissioned by NMSW and premiered at Dartington Hall, supported by the PRS for Music Foundation.
2016: ‘Shadows of Light II (after Mark Rothko)’ performed by the NewEar Ensemble, Kansas City, USA.
2015: ‘Re-Tracing’. Presenting visual work and music with violinist Philippa Mo, and Sam Thorne (Artistic Director, Tate St Ives). At CAST Helston and Porthmeor Studios St Ives.
Selected Activity and Outputs 2013 – 2014
2013 – 2014: ‘Portraits for a Study (after Gerhard Richter)’. Funded by Arts Council England and the PRS for Music Foundation, supported by Yamaha UK, Vconect, BT, Falmouth University, Goldsmiths University and the Royal Academy of Music, performed by Roderick Chadwick and the Kreutzer Quartet.
Selected Activity and Outputs 2007 – 2013
2012: Tate Interpretation published ‘Shadows of Light II (after Mark Rothko)’ in the Rothko Room multimedia at Tate Modern.
2011: Southbank Centre, London, 3rd Ear Symposium, ‘Scene & Heard, Music in a Visual Culture’: a presentation of my work in response to Antony Gormley and Doris Salcedo at Tate Modern.
2009: Making Sculpture Sound -‘ Svayambh’ after sculpture by Anish Kapoor, at the Anish Kapoor exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts, London, performed by Peter Sheppard Skaerved and Neil Heyde.
2009: ‘Syruw, 5 Kazakh Tableaux for Violin Duo’: commissioned by the Embassy of Kazakhstan and the Brunei Gallery, SOAS. Performed by Retorica: Philippa Mo and Harriet Mackenzie (violins).
2009: ‘Shadows of Light (Music from the Seagram Murals)’ for the 2008/2009 Rothko Show commissioned by Tate Modern, performed by the Kreutzer Quartet, Michael Thompson, and Nicholas Clapton.
2008:’ Memory Field (after Antony Gormley)’, performed at Antony Gormley studio by the Kreutzer Quartet and Nicholas Clapton. Supported by the Henry Moore Foundation.
2008: 2D2N Festival: The Fourteenth International Festival of Modern Art, Odessa, Ukraine: world premiere of ‘Aurulum’ for violin duo after a painting by Bridget Riley. Performed by Retorica: Philippa Mo and Harriet Mackenzie (violins).
2008: ‘Shibboleth (Passacaglia)’ after Doris Salcedo for solo violin, premiered in the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern. Supported by the Henry Moore Foundation and Tate, performed by Peter Sheppard Skaerved.
2007: ‘Fugue Refractions after Laocoön’, premiered at The Henry Moore Institute, Leeds, by violinist Philippa Mo.
2007: ‘Four Trajectories after John Hoyland’ for string quartet: world premiere with the Kreutzer Quartet at Saint Bartholomew the Great, London.
2015: Composer-Researcher for the ‘Online Orchestra’ project at Falmouth University funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council
2011 – 2014: Honorary Research Fellowship: at the Royal Academy of Music (art and music)
2007 – 2008: Henry Moore Fellowship: at the Royal Academy of Music (art and music)
Aitchison, J. (2017) ‘Sea of Music’, in Feeke, S. (ed.) Sea Music, Anthony Caro. London: Ridinghouse, pp.83-85.
