Roy Claire Potter has recently presented solo and collaborative work with Counterflows, Glasgow; Cafe OTO, London; BBC Radio 3; Salzburger Kunstverein; Collecteurs, New York; Tate Britain, and A plus A, Venice. Forthcoming work is commissioned by Book Works, London, and BEK (Bergen Centre for Electronic Arts).
Influenced by linguistics and performance theory, Roy is an artist and writer who makes performance, writing, audio, drawing, and installation, and they often collaborate with musicians and sound artists for radio broadcast and music festivals. Across the wide range of their work, Roy tells stories built from fragmented, intense images that depict moving bodies or domestic scenes and architectural settings. Roy’s interest in subtext and narrative sequencing is felt in the way they use fast-paced talking or reading speeds, and restricted or partial views of space. Complicated social or group dynamics, and the aftermath of violent events are common themes in Roy’s work and are usually treated with a dark, sometimes wilful humour.
They have published two books of experimental art writing, Round That Way (Ma Bibliotheque, 2017) and Mental Furniture (VerySmallKitchen 2014) and shorter works are published by Dostoyevsky Wannabe, Hotel Partisan, Tate Publishing, and CCA Derry-Londonderry. Live and studio recorded audio works are released with Cafe OTO’s OTOROKU and TAKUROKO labels, London; Sub Rosa, Belgium; Chocolate Monk, Brighton; and Fort Evil Fruit, Dublin.
Roy has been a mentor for artists through CCA Derry-Londonderry, Tate Liverpool, Spike Island and DYCP, and was a tutor of Hybrid Writing at the Arvon Foundation. They are a Senior Lecturer of Fine Art at Liverpool John Moores University where they programme MA Fine Art, and they are commercially represented by A plus A, Venice.
roy.claire.potter@gmail.com
Select CV
2024
Bergen Centre for Electronic Art (BEK), Norway, Shit Out Here Purple (performance)
Book Works, London, The Wastes, (novel) ISBN 978-1-912570-20-1
2023
Fingal County Council, Dublin, Where there is resonance, in ‘Echo’s Bones: a parallel play’ ed. Sarah Browne (essay in publication)
ISBN 978-1-914348-06-8
Art Review, London, Who Does Not Envy With Us Is Against Us by Maria Fusco, ed. Chris Fite-Wassilak (review)
2022
PRIMARY, Nottingham, Land Lay Moldbrest (experimental audiobook)
OTOROKU, Cafe OTO, London, To Call Out Into The Night, with Park Jiha (live studio album)
Slim Volume, Manchester, Sudden Wealth with Roy Claire Potter, with Chris Evans, Morten Norbye Halvorsen, and Graham Kelly (album)
Counterflows music festival, Glasgow, Park Jiha and Roy Claire Potter (performance)
Cafe OTO, Park Jiha and Roy Claire Potter (performance)
AplusA Gallery, Venice, Death to all pigs who enter here!, cur. Sandro Pignotti (solo exhibition)
2021
Dostoyevsky Wannabe, Manchester, Synopsis in error, in ‘Praxis’ eds. Andrew Hodgson, Rosie Šnajdr and Chris Clarke (anthology)
Castlefield Gallery, Salford, Sardonic Harmony, with Hardeep Pandhal, David Steans, Stephan Sadler (online exhibition)
MOSTYN Gallery, Llandudno, Sharing the Trouble of Listening ed. Juliette Desorgues (essay online)
Partisan Hotel, London, CARRER DELS ESCUDELLERS, in ‘Phonica’ ed. Dominic Jaeckle and Christodoulos Makris (online publication)
2020
Radiophrenia, Glasgow. Three Sweep Between in collaboration with Kieron Piercy (broadcast)
Tate Britain, London. A Bridge Can Tell A Flood Nothing, in ‘Under The Bridge’ cur. Mark Leckey (reading)
Cafe OTO, London. Entrance song; last time, on Takuroku (digital release)
Ma Bibliotheque, London. Only two kinds of people, in ‘On Care’ collection, ed. Sharon Kivland & Rebecca Jargoe (publication)
ISBN 978-1-910055-71-7
IsolationTV, online /Salzburger Kunstverein, Austria. Each Day Less Than The Next, in ‘Episode Two: A Most Sensitive Nucleus’ cur. Vaari Claffy (online group exhibition)
BBC Radio 3, London. In Session: Roy Claire Potter and Park Jiha, on ‘Late Junction’ prod. Alannah Chance at Reduced Listening (broadcast)
Collecteurs, New York. Lads of Aran and CHAVSCUMBOSS, in ‘1-31’ cur. Adam Carr (online group exhibition)
David Dale Gallery, Glasgow. The Shooting of Aftershave Man, in ‘Preramble’, cur. Jude Browning (performance)
2019
Artissima, Turin. Roy Claire Potter and Marjetica Potrč, in ‘Dialogues’ cur. Sandro Pignotti for A plus A Gallery (art fair exhibition)
The International Anthony Burgess Foundation, Manchester / SubRosa, Belgium. Adjurst, collaboration with Kieron Piercy, on ‘Conversations With The Anthony Burgess Cassette Archives’ ed. Alan Dunn (vinyl release)
Tate Publishing, London. A Bridge Can Tell A Flood Nothing, in ‘O Magick Power Of Bleakness: Mark Leckey’ ed. Clarrie Wallis & Elsa Coustou (commissioned writing) ISBN 978-1-84976-634-0
Wysing Arts Centre, Cambridge. Untitled improvised collaboration with Ziúr, at ‘Wysing Polyphonic Music Festival’, cur. Somerset House (performance)
OUTPUT gallery, Liverpool. Roy Claire Potter, cur. Gabriella De La Puente (solo exhibition)
Radiophrenia, Glasgow. Eyes Rifle in collaboration with Kieron Piercy (broadcast)
The Castle Hotel, Manchester. Playhouse (Creep), at ‘No Matter’ cur. Hilary White, Jasmine Linklater and Nell Osborne (performance)
IMT Gallery, London. Rich Curtains: Performance of Stile, in ‘SNOW CRASH’ cur. Kirsten Cooke (performance)
2018
IMT Gallery, London. Rich Curtains Pending Performance, in ‘SNOW CRASH’ cur. Kirsten Cooke (group exhibition)
The Horse Hospital, London. A foot to the chest, at ‘The Bodies That Remain book launch’, cur. Emily Beber (reading)
Salford University. A foot to the chest, at ‘Poetry Emergency: North West Radical Poetry Festival’, cur. Joey Frances (reading)
Cafe OTO, London. Playhouse (Creep) at ‘25 Years of Chocolate Monk’, cur. Dylan Nyoukis (performance)
FortEvilFruit, Dublin. I am come from a place in collaboration with Bridget Hayden (cassette release)
ChelseaSPACE, London. Playhouse (Creep), in ‘ORGASMIC STREAMING_ ORGANIC GARDENING_ ELECTROCULTURE,’ cur. Karen Di Franco & Irene Revell (performance)
Punctum Books, New York. Lads of Aran, in ‘Bodies That Remain: essays on the writer’s body’, ed. Emmy Beber (publication) ISBN 978-1-947447-67-7
David Roberts Art Foundation, London/Mostyn Gallery, Llandudno. Bad Thing, in ‘She sees the shadows’ exhibition catalogue, ed. Adam Carr and Olivia Leahy (commissioned writing)
Hopscotch Books, Berlin. Round That Way, at ‘An Evening With Ma Bibliothéque’, cur. Sharon Kivland (performance)
ChelseaSPACE, London. Playhouse, in ‘ORGASMIC STREAMING_ ORGANIC GARDENING_ ELECTROCULTURE,’ cur. Karen Di Franco & Irene Revell (group exhibition)
White Rainbow, London. If I had a hammer, in ‘Chikako Yamishiro’ exhibition catalogue, ed. Edward Ball (commissioned writing)
Corridor 8. Dwelling, in ‘Occasional Residents’, ed. Lara Eagleton (publication)
A plus A gallery, Venice. Calico, in ‘In The Reading Room From Hell’ cur. Matt Williams & Alun Rowlands (performance)
2017
Iklectik Arts Lab, London. Calico, in ‘Going along without a body: a comment on the soundtrack ritual’ cur. Benjamin Owen (performance)
Ma Bibliotheque, London. Round That Way, ed. Sharon Kivland (sole-authored book) ISBN 978-1-910055-38-0
Chocolate Monk, Brighton. Scally Nike Leather Glove Smoke (cassette release)
Cafe OTO, London. CHAVSCUMBOSS, at ‘Cesura’ cur. Cesura Journal (performance)
Supernormal Festival, Oxfordshire. Catenary, at Supernormal 2017 music festival (performance)
Xero Kline & Coma, London. Coupler, cur. Pil and Galia Kollective (solo exhibition)
The International Anthony Burgess Foundation, Manchester. Selected readings, at ‘Matana Roberts presents Coin, Coin Chapter Three’, cur. Psykick Dancehall Recordings (reading)
Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin. Catenary, in ‘Phonica Six’ cur. Christodoulos Makris & Olesya Zdorovetska (theatre performance)
Wysing Arts Centre, Cambridge. Touching, in ‘Mene Mene Tekel Parsin’ cur. Jesse Darling (group exhibition)
CCA Derry-Londonderry. Penmon Point, Penmon, in ‘No Title: Sarah Pierce’ exhibition catalogue, ed. Sarah Pierce and Sara Greavu (commissioned writing)
2016
Colour Out of Space, Brighton. CHAVSCUMBOSS, at Sallis Benney Theatre cur. Dylan Nyoukis, Karen Nyoukis & Michael Sippings (performance)
Lydgalleriet, Bergen, Norway. Touching, at ‘Smargniture’ cur. Daniela Cascella & Natasha Soobramanien (performance)
Cecil Sharp House, London. Penmon Point, at ‘Hmn 8’ cur. Anne Tallentire & Chris Fite-Wassilak (performance)
Oui Performance, York. Touching, at ‘ACTION Poetry’ cur. Victoria Grey & Nathan Walker (performance)
Fuse Arts Space, Bradford. I am come from a place, collaboration with Bridget Hayden at ‘Subveillance’ cur. Helen Kaplinsky (collaborative performance)
Supernormal Festival, Oxfordshire. I am come from a place, collaboration with Bridget Hayden (collaborative performance)
Leeds College of Art Gallery. Two Meet, at ‘Library Interventions’ cur. Nick Norton (performance)
White Rainbow, London. Cast Metal Nut, and Like an idiot on a moor in ‘Overlay’ cur. Jeremy Millar (video installation and performance)
Gorse, Dublin. Learning Pieces, interview with Sarah Pierce, in ‘Gorse Journal 5’ ed. Susan Tomaselli (interview)
Learning Department at Tate, London. Writing as Research, ed. Linda Stupart and Emma McGarry (pamphlet)
2015
FortEvilFruit, Dublin. Mother To No Swimming Laughing Child in collaboration with Bridget Hayden (cassette release)
Furtherfield Gallery, London. Figure of the lad, at ‘Torque’ cur. Nathan Jones (performance)
2014
The Castle Hotel, Manchester. Posh Man’s Pet, at ‘Other Room’ with Karen MacCormack & Steve McCaffery, cur. James Wilkes, Tom Jenks, Scott Thurston (performance)
VerySmallKitchen, Hastings. Mental Furniture, ed. David Berridge (sole-authored book) ISBN 978-1-909925-04-5
Education
MFA Fine Art, Ruskin School of Art, University of Oxford, 2016
PGDip Art Writing, Goldsmiths, University of London, 2013
BA Contemporary Creative Practice, Leeds Metropolitan University, 2008
VAV (audio visual arts) Gerrit Rietveld Academie, Amsterdam, 2007
Curatorial projects
Shady Grant Money, small grant-making programme for artist writers, guest selected with Taylor LeMelle of PSS press January - July 2023
Shady Todmorden, reading series at The Magic City, Todmorden, July - December 2018
Shady Dealings With Language, performance events series at X Marks The Bokship and Matts Gallery, London; Toast, Manchester; & Model, Leeds; and Rhubaba Gallery, Edinburg, May - September 2014
Awards and residencies
Bergen Centre for Electronic Arts (BEK), residency for Re:Imagine Europe project, 2023
Cove Park, Helensburgh, research residency funded by Contemporary Art Research Lab, Liverpool John Moores University, 2021
Van Gogh House, artists’ residency recipient, nominated by Maria Fusco, 2021
Primary, Nottingham, ‘Work in Common’ residency recipient, 2019
Paul Hamlyn Foundation Award for Artists, nominee, 2017
The Arts Foundation Fellowship Award, nominee, 2017
Wysing Arts Centre, Cambridge, ‘Polyphonic’ residency recipient, 2017
Leeds College of Art, ‘Library Interventions’ residency recipient, 2016
Ruskin School of Art, Erna Plachte Scholarship Award, 2015
Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts, for Shady Dealings With Language, 2014
The Banff Centre, Calgary, Canada, ‘In(ter)ventions’ residency recipient, 2014
Works in collections
Vittorio Micucci, Italy. Lads of Aran, giclée print on Canson-Infinity Rag Photographique 310gsm, 13.7cm x 21.32cm, nine page single edition
Carlos Marsano, Peru. Smashbelt, ink on polythene, 5x4m, 2019
Carlos Marsano, Peru. Roy (Miki and Elvis Potts) ink on watercolour paper 30x42cm, 2019