I was the organiser of this series of exhibitions in collaboration with Surface Gallery
There is perhaps, an inescapable connection between art and play, where both practices perform at times according to unspoken yet specific ‘Rules of the Game’. Both seep into places where they are not invited; have the potential to create havoc and disruption in the most unlikely of spaces. Play can be used as a means of escape or of immersion: it is a gesture of bored distraction performed whilst whiling away lost hours or empty days. It is the performative action that fuels the formation of fantasy worlds and the creation of alter egos: a means of desirable disorientation or vertigo that transports the player into some other fictional realm or psychological state of mind. Or else play might be seen as a wilful tactic through which to rethink habitual patterns and routine behaviour; where it has a more critical or creative function as a process of discovery and of experimentation; or as a means of subversion or critique. Play might be driven by the uncertainty of chance, or by relentless competition. It can be rule-based or improvisational, recklessly chaotic or strategically controlled.
Since 2006 Nottingham Trent's Fine Art department have collaborated with Surface Gallery on an annual series of exhibitions, through which to encourage and celebrate the breadth and diversity of fine art practices within the programme at Trent. In the last two years Surface Gallery has played host to a series of events, exhibitions and projects by students and staff. In 2007 proposals were invited to explore the connections between art and play, in response to the title Rules of the Game.
