A Warm Belly

The Practice of Space (Studio) by Sabari Majumdar and Hsian-Jung, Chen - MA CCE

a warm belly- a project about the homeless home

The Practice of Space (Studio) by Sabari Majumdar and Hsian-Jung, Chen - MA CCEThe Practice of Space (Studio) by Sabari Majumdar and Hsian-Jung, Chen - MA CCE

The gathering of homeless people is a special artifi cial landscape in Lincoln’s Inn Fields. The history of homeless people there can be traced back to the 1980s. In that period of time, many homeless people gathered and slept there overnight. In 1992, the fences were raised and they were cleared out. In 1993, Lincoln’s Inn Fields re-opened with new railings and the park was closed every early evening.

Although no homeless people reside there now, it is easy to meet the homeless people there in the daytime and fi nd the vestige of their presence. For example, much used disposable tableware along the periphery may be from homeless when they fi nish the food provided by some religious organizations or individual groups at night. The homeless people not only meet the daily-life requirements here, such as food, clothes; but also satisfy the desire for knowledge. For instance, Mobile Library run by The Quaker Homeless Action is special for homeless people. It moves around London and stops at Lincoln’s Inn Fields every other Tuesday evening around 7pm to 8pm, the time when the food suppliers appear.

The confl ict and contrast of hierarchy are also obvious characters in Lincoln’s Inn Fields. Around that area is the place where many law fi rms and London School of Economics and Political Science located, so both the upper class and lower class are the main users in Lincoln’s Inn Fields.


The project questions the notion of a home. What is a home? Is it a roof above one’s head? Is it a beautiful piece of architecture? Is it social security? Is it being in the lap of luxury? Is it where you share a space with your loved ones? Or is it the food that your mother cooks?

Interwoven through refl ections of one’s past, present and future, a homeless home is created at Lincoln’s inn fi eld. Step in and feel the warmth through ten diverse installations that realises this dream.

Objective:


The event has three core components - the homeless home (traveling exhibition)- the making of homeless home (book launch) - the homeless DJ (music event)


This event would sensitise the community towards the homeless and remind them that everyone has a beautiful mind fi lled with many desires and dreams which needs to be awakened!

By organising this event at Lincoln’s inn fi eld, we disrupt some of the byelaws, which govern the space, and also interestingly create a night of nostalgia. Providing shelters to many homeless dreams for a few nights at the same space where their community camped 3 decades back.

Why:


The project gives people an opportunity to discover and interact with the unknown side of the homeless. A certain percentage of the profi t from the project would go to the all the homeless participants and the artists who worked on this project.

Who:


Prenatal:Through a series of intensive workshops with the homeless of Lincoln’s inn fi eld we will explore their concepts of a home - a space where they would like to live forever. A few artists will work with them closely encouraging them to freely explore different materials like paint, clay, paper, metal, soft wood and so on. In the beginning they might be hesitant to share but with the passage of time they would get involved and would start to enjoy it. Hence through colour, texture and form, we try to permeate through the invisible wall which they have build around them for years.


colour pens, white papers, courage and sometime cigarettes

- take a stroll round Lincoln’s Inn Fields to observe if there is any homeless people- Find someone who looks friendly and then walk close to him/ her- Say a friendly hello, introduce your self and try to chat- Sit with them and ask them to draw or talk about a space where they would want to live

What is your dream space?


Jon Tomlinson - LeisterJon is the newcomer to homeless life. He just started his wandering life 6 weeks ago. His carry-on stuff is obviously more than other homeless people. Maybe the longer you wander, the less you need.

Do you have a dream?‘No. I don’t have any dreams.’

Did you have a dream before?‘En…yes. I had a wish to enter college to get higher education. I want to study auto engineering. ‘

‘ I want a green meadow with fruit trees, flowers, and a stream flowing through it. I will keep some chicken and ducks in it so that I don’t have to worry about breakfast. My small cottage is located in the garden. It should have two huge French windows. In the centre of my home is the fireplace. A bookshelf with engineering related books and John Force’s biography. I don’t like fiction. There is a fish tank at the corner it is 4 feet x 4 feet, a cube and not a rectangle. I will have tropical colourful fishes, it is relaxing. The floor is wooden, and its colour is dark cream. A golden retriever accompanies me. There is a metal workshop in my garden, too. I can use lathe machines to make products and sell them at eBay. From my garden, there is a path leading to an old fashioned English pub owned by a grumpy landlord. We hate each other but we see each other daily. It is a stone building with varnished wooden floor and teak furniture. I don’t like modern it’s boring. It will be better if the pub is haunted. It will be so much fun if tablesstart levitating and chairs start flying…. So much fun! This is Eutopia.’

(Narrative by Jon/ Drawing by Sabari)


Liming -Beijing Liming is from Beijing, China. He has been in UK for more than 20 years. Two years ago, he worked in a Chinese restaurants. However, it is harder and harder to fi nd a job without a passport in recent years as Britain government’s strict ban on illegal work. Now he cannot go back to China, because he does not have money or the China’s passport.

‘Maybe I have no family now. I lost contact with them ‘ - said Liming.

He has been on the drift for nearly 2 years. During the night, he sleeps in the night bus. In daytime, he endeavors to fi nd a job.

‘I want two bedrooms in my home. One includes a double bed, which is for my wife and me. There is a desk in it. On it there are two laptops, which are belong to my wife and me. Beside it is a smaller room for my son. Boys have better adaptive ability than girls, so I want have a son. There is a bookshelf in it, and a desk and a laptop as well. Beside the smaller room is the bathroom. There must be a kitchen and a living room, too. There is a garden outside. The clothes line is in the garden. And I want a red bicycle, because I cannot drive.’

(Narrative and drawing by Liming)


Leo Price - AfricaLeo is from Africa. He is quite young, about more than 20 years old. He is energetic and busy making friends.

‘I want the walls of my house to be blue. I want a bed, because I don’t have a bed now. Wait, I‘ll go to say hello to my friend.’ - he left.

(Narrative by Leo/ Drawing by Sabari)


Dany - GlasgowDany is from Glasgow, Scotland. He has being homeless about 6 years. Sitting on the bench in Lincoln’s Inn Fields, he repeated the movement again and again of opening the cider, having a sip, gazing at the garden in the front.

Do you want to have a job? ‘No.’ he answered.

Do you like your life now?‘Yeah...’ he shrugged his shoulder.

‘It has a door in the front, and includes three or four windows. Outside is the garden. There are half dozen red bushes around the house. Red and yellow roses spread on the bushes. The most outside is the hedge with the creeper. Inside the house are two bedrooms, one kitchen, one living room, and one bathroom. In one bedroom, I want a wardrobe to put my jeans and clothes. A carpet with red and green colours. I want a stereo system and a couch. Then I can sit on the couch and watch TV or listen to the music. There is a cupboard in the kitchen. A wooden oval table and four chairs. In the living room, I want a TV and stereo system as well. A large couch and four chairs and a yellow carpet. And I want keep a small dog with brown and yellow hair. The dog should also need a small carpet to keep it warm. There is a black stonewall and a gate in front of the house.

My door should be painted red and have a doorplate named Dany.’

(Narrative by Dany/ Drawing by Hsian-Jung)


William Joself - from GodWilliam was drinking beer on the bench facing the tennis court. Maybe he got a little drunk, so he say hello to passersby passionately. The prisoner ID card in his bag tells his story in the past. He has gone to prison time and again. Now he is free.

The homeless life or the days in prison, which one do you prefer?‘ Of course, now. I can see God everywhere. God is in the sunshine, in the sky, in the fallen leaf, and also in my pocket.’ he said joyfully. ‘ It is marvellous to meet you today. Don’t worry, I am not gay. But I really like you. I have a thing for you. Someone gave me. I know you will use it. Education is really important. Don’t give up studying. Read, read, read! Become educated.’ he draws out a pen (metro bank mark on it) from his pocket.

Can you draw for me?‘ Wow, I like drawing. My father is an artist. Wait, let me finish the beer.’ he opened another beer.

Can you explain what you have drawn? ‘ En…The yellow is sunshine. Love, love is important. And little Johnny …’

What is little Johnny?‘ En…the tree. You know, that can grow very tall…’ he answered.

(Narrative and Drawing by William Joself)


A panel of famous artists and anthropologists will shortlist ten artworks for the exhibition. Parallel to these ten postgraduate students from Goldsmiths College would be chosen based on their portfolio. One artist would work closely with one homeless to create the essence of his/her (homeless) home through any media like painting, ceramic, textile, music or film, et al as long as it is within the given size limitation.

We have started the process of talking to a few post graguate students and they are excited about participating.- Aisha Abid from Pakistan (painting)- Ekaterina Bogomolova from Russia (music)- Kosby Fu from Hong Kong (media and communications)- Rafaela Cappai from Brazil (drama)

The finished collaborative collection will get compiled into a book titled the “making of the homeless home”. It will talk about the entire journey from the original concept art to the final art piece. It will throw light at the uniqueness of each story while understanding the notion of home through its symbols and cultural context.

Perinatal:


The travelling “Homeless Home” will be the primary facet of the event titled “a warm belly”. Its will begin its journey from Lincoln’s inn fi eld. There will be ten portable tents spread over the lawn, which can accommodate 4 to 6 visitors at a time. All tents would look same from outside but each installation inside would be unique and different from the other in terms of treatment and style, material and colour, symbols and metaphors. They would belong to a homeless and an artist.

- The exhibition would be traveling to various public spaces around the world like the Central Park (New York), Tiananmen Square (Beijing), Arc de Triumph(Paris) and so on. -The book would be launched at the ban stand which is the centre of Lincoln’s inn fi eld. Every copy sold will be signed by a homeless. - The homeless DJ would be held at the tennis court.

Postnatal:

Music Nite-The homeless DJ

Book launch-The Making of Homeless Home

The Plan for the exhibition at the Lincoln’s inn Field

The Tent Galleries- Homeless Home


Tent Dimension - 3(dia) x 2.5 x 0.6mNet Wt. – 18kgMaterial - 100% cotton canvas water proofCapacity - 4 to 6 persons

“each tent is a warm belly which nourishes a dream”


- Art Council provides grants for activities carried out over a set period and which engage people in England in arts activities, and help artists and arts organisations in England carry out their work.

- NESTA is the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts - an independent body with a mission to make the UK more innovative.

- Goldsmiths’ Annual Fund provides opportunities by supporting student projects, Improving the student experience and funding scholarships.

- Websites:http://www.qha.org.ukhttp://www.camden.gov.ukhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln%27s_Inn_Fieldshttp://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=45131http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/grants-arts/http://www.nesta.org.uk/http://www.gold.ac.uk/giving-to-goldsmiths/annual-fund-application/http://lovelytextiles.blogspot.com/

- Books:The palace of projects / Ilya Kabakov and Emilia Kabakov.Public projects, or the spirit of a place - Kabakov, Il´ëiìa Iosifovich,1933 Art, not chance- nine artists’ diaries edited Paul AllenArt culture & Enterprise - the politics of art and the cultural industries Justin Lewis

Funding possibilities:

Bibliography:


“ A warm belly - a project about the homeless home”Sabari Majumdar and Hsian-Jung, Chen

MA in Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship (Design) 2010-11

The Practice of Space (Studio) - Lincoln’s Inn FieldProject Guide: Terry Rosenberg, Duncan Fairfax and Mike Waller

Goldsmiths’ College, London.

Documents

A Warm Belly