John COURT, UK/Finland

Born in 1969 in Bromley, Kent, lives and works in Lapland, Finland.

In his performance art work John Court is principally using repetition, time and exhaustion as compositionl means. If he investigates his own personal experiences encountered throughout his life, from childhood to the present day, this is realized symbolically withhin the framework of the 8-hour work day, which regulates our daily life. In his work Court substitutes narration with a repetitive action and its existential questioning of time and alienation. But also of life itself. For Court this is no conceptual construction. On the contrary, the concepts generated through his work are all rooted in his own personal life experience. Thus, creating a sustained expression of the personal and the universal.

John Court graduated from Camberwell School of Art, London in 1994 and from Norwich School of Art and Design in 1997 with a degree in Sculpture. He moved to Finland in 1997, and lives and works in Lapland, close to the Arctic Circle. His work has been exhibited in the UK, Scandinavia and Berlin, and his performances have captivated audiences worldwide at events such as Infr’Action Venezia in Venice Italy (2013) SpaceX Gallery Exeter in UK (2012) Guangzhou Live Art Festival in China, ANTI Contemporary Art Festival in Finland (both 2010), the Venice Biennale (2005) and the Liverpool Biennial (2004). 

John Court. Guangzhou Live 4. November 2013. © Ou Zhihang.