24 Aug 2011

Reactor - Greenman and Regular Fellows at Trade, Nottingham

The Green Man & Regular Fellows is a newly commissioned, live artwork in the form of a pub, complete with adjoining function room. Here Reactor's interest in the the nature of membership as a social construct manifests itself in a series of temporary groups and levels of fellowship. The structure of the work plays with the traditions and conventions of the 'public house' and 'private members' clubs', producing unexpectedly dis lodged behaviours.

This brief materialisation of The Green Man & Regular Fellows presents a set of mysteries, inviting speculation about its symbols and purpose. Where did it come from, and who is it for? The Green Man & Regular Fellows offers membership, invites you in for drinks and provides a rich environment of song, laughter and games. As the Landlord calls upon the Regulars to lend a hand and the more Irregular members burst out of the back rooms, the atmosphere increasingly becomes more intense and behaviours more frenzied. It will soon become clear why our Regular Fellows like to come back time and time again.

If membership is not for you, and you prefer not to participate, the Function Room will house Reactor's new video installation, The Guild.

Whichever position you choose, you will receive a warm welcome.

Want to know more?

Just sign-up to receive our regular newsletter, and apply for membership at the 'The Green Man & Regular Fellows' website www.thegreenman.vze.com

The Green Man & Regular Fellows is a 'members only' social pub for over 18s, early application for membership is recommended to avoid disappointment. However, events in the Function Room are open to non-members of any age.

Note to Editors:

Reactor is an art collective based in the UK. Reactor creates scenarios that assemble new collective realities where audiences and those involved with the group co-participate. Through ongoing research into belief systems and their place in collective action, Reactor explores the ways in which culture and common beliefs hold together specific social groups. Seeking to transcend the parameters of an exhibition; Reactor employ an extensive and lateral development of the possibilities of what the artwork can be, encouraging it to spill out from its initial structure into an expanded field of activity.

'The Green Man & Regular Fellows' is a new artwork created by a newly assembled Reactor, including core members Niki Russell and Dan Williamson, guest member Stuart Tait and host member Bruce Asbestos (Director of Trade Gallery).

Recent Reactor projects include:
Double Take Triple Give - MoBY (Israel); Big Lizards Big Idea - Donau Festival (Austria), Wunderbar Festival (UK) and Schirn Kunsthalle (Germany); The Munkanon Centre - The Model (Ireland) and The Knot (Germany); The Geodecity Project, Grizedale (UK) and SSW (UK); and The Tetra Phase - Castlefield Gallery (UK).

www.reactorweb.com

Trade is an artist-run gallery based in Nottingham. Trade Gallery has been developed to provide additional routes of engagement and criticism with contemporary art, through exhibitions, events, articles and online interviews.

Recent exhibitions at Trade gallery include:
Karin Kihlberg & Reuben Henry - Consequence of Retrospect; Elisa Pône, Katie Davies - Flash Bang; Richard Paul, David Sherry - The Perception Instruction; Artur Zmijewski - Them; Tomas Chaffe - Sometimes Artists Work Here; Abigail Reynolds - Mount Fear; and Joseph Beuys, 'I like America and America Likes Me'.

This project is supported by Arts Council England

For further information
www.tradegallery.org