Clout
WHAT
A multimedia recording and performance group started by Tim Gruchy. The music was electro percussive infused with a jazzy flavour. The vision was combination of photographic, photomechanical and hand painted techniques coming together in a dense colourful array, utilising multi slide and super8 projection. The performance was a lively exploration from conceptual performance art to disco down featuring a suite of outlandish custom costumery.
WHO
Tim Gruchy, Mark Louttit, Eugene Carchesio and Virginia Barratt. Graphics Design by Malcolm Enright. Costumes by Belltower & Antibody. Publicity by Anne Jones.
WHEN
1986 – 1987
WHERE
Based in Brisbane they performed in Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide.
WHY
Tim’s interests were always about the nexus of sound, image and the body. CLOUT provided a vehicle for taking these explorations beyond a collective undertaking into a more focused set of endeavours under his direction.
NOTES
CLOUT released a cassette ‘Information Grotesk’ in 1986. In 1987 they devised a full length performance piece ‘Fine Fragments’ which had seasons in Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide. A video of this was also released.
“CLOUT – Fine Fragments was a full-length multimedia performance piece presented in Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide in 1986 and 1987. CLOUT was my next major undertaking following on immediately from the demise of the two ZIP strands. I was determined to fully direct this project. I was already working a great deal with producer Mark Louttit in various capacities, similarly performance artist Virginia Barratt and artist musician Eugene Carchesio, so it was easy and obvious to collaborate with them.
Initially there was a musical bed, which first manifest as a cassette release however the key venture was to develop a major performance work involving complex relationships on stage between multi-slide and film projection dancers and musicians.
There were a number of precursor performances including Apparent Transitional at the IMA as part of Know Your Product exhibition curated by Ross Harley in September 1986 but is was not long before the full-scale production had a season at the Cement Box Theatre at UQ before seasons at Performance Space in Sydney and later at Adelaide in 1987.”
LINKS
Clout Flickr Pool
https://www.flickr.com/photos/8823497@N08/albums/72157651988988787
Tim Gruchy