1 Mi2 is the latest project from artist and musician STERGIN. It seeks to make deeper connections across communities in a time of division. Conversations with people living within one square mile of the artist in Lewisham in south-east London inspired new songs that tackle their personal stories.
A MUSIC PROJECT PROMOTING EMPATHY IN THE SQUARE MILE WE LIVE IN
“I know that many of our societal problems have deep roots and are very complicated. Nevertheless, I want to send out a positive message and encourage people to chat and listen to each other” says Stergin. ”Turning these chats into music is my way of having fun as an artist and also preserving them. I see music, or art in general, as a shared part of our human experience, everyone can and should engage in it. In the media we mainly see ‘exceptional’ people doing ‘exceptional’ things but I like to involve people in the creation process and explore their everyday stories to find the exceptional bits in there.” (Stergin)
The project has aspirations to grow beyond a square mile in South East London and patch artists across multiple square miles from all over the world. Stergin is looking for artists from anywhere on the planet to explore their immediate square miles and follow the same process: Talk. Listen. Create.
All the songs, interviews and portrait photographs of the interviewees can be explored as an online exhibition on the one square mile website.
The Arts Council England supported artist and Help Musicians UK’ Do It Differently awardee worked with different musicians including collaborator drummer Adam Betts (Jarvis Cocker, Squarepusher, Heritage Orchestra) to write and record the songs.
1 Mi2 is supported by the Austrian Cultural Forum London.
Press about Stergin’s previous releases:
“This is a record that you just couldn’t have heard five years ago. It’s completely in the now, in the moment trying to push the boundaries of what’s possible and what can be done.“
(Tom Robinson, BBC6 Music)
“Oddly infectious, the sheer alien nature of the sound is allied to a whimsical pop touch that truly gets under the skin.”
(Robin Murray – Clash Magazine)
For further information or interview questions please contact: Vinzenz Stergin, info@stergin.com
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