“The Living Room” was an art installation commissioned by the Watermans Arts Centre in Brentford, London in 2005. The Project drew from a variety of material gathered through systematic research focusing on a selection of 8 homes and their occupants. Presented as a collection of documentary films, audio interviews, photography and print works; this multimedia art exhibition addressed peoples’ individuality through the looking glass of their living spaces.

This installation was later developed and expanded into a larger exhibition entitled “Domestic Archaeology” at the Geffrye Museum in east London in 2006.

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Concept: Chris Allen & Robert Rainbow
Collaborating Artists: Chris Allen, Robert Rainbow, Brede Korsmo, Jude Greenaway and Tim Cowie
Producer Alice Ceresole

DESIGN FOR ELECTRO GLIDE, TOKYO

T-shirts for Japan’s biggest dance music festival, 2005
Designed by Chris Allen & Brede Korsmo

HAPPY  ACCIDENTS

Limted edition set of designs produced at Counterprint sceenprinting workshops
Sold at the V&A design fete in 2003

Designed by Chris Allen & Rob Rainbow
Curated by Scarlet Projects

PRINT WORK

from The Living Room & Domestic Archaeology exhibition, 2004
Designed by Brede Korsmo, Chris Allen & Rob Rainbow

ARTICULATED EXHIBITION POSTER

Bargehouse, London, 2006
Designed by Chris Allen

DOMESTIC ARCHAEOLOGY POSTER

Geffrye Museum, London, 2006
Designed by Chris Allen, photo by Brede Korsmo.

LIGHT SURGEONS WORKSHOP

The Lux Centre, 1998
Designed by Chris Allen

This installation was exhibited in the Marconi Gallery in Milan in 2003 as part of an exhibition of new furniture by designer Ron Arad. Using the translucency of a material called Corian, Ron Arad Associates created a mysteriously illuminated wall and round table by hand plugging thousands of individual of optic fibers just below the materials surface. These optic fibers were then gathered together and light was transmitted to their ends embedded in the Corian via a projector.

These surfaces where then brought to life and illuminated with abstract studies of motion. Collisions of orbiting particles explored the convex form of the table while flocks of birds migrated across the gallery wall. The combined effect was a surreal, futuristic landscape that pulsed in reaction to an audio sound track featuring material by DJ Food and sound design by Scanone.

This installation has also been shown at other international art & design festivals including the British Pavilion at the Venice Biennial in 2004.

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Produced and Directed By Christopher Thomas Allen
Visual contributions by Brede Korsmo
Animation by Jude Greenaway
Additional sound design by Scanone

KISS OFF

Artist: Robert Rainbow

SPIRES

Artist: Brede Krosmo

DEAD MAN

Artist: Tim Cowie

Project Director: Christopher Thomas Allen
Producer: Annie Kwan

In December 2006 The Light Surgeons produced and curated a cross-disciplinary art exhibition on the south bank that was commissioned by Nokia Nseries. Articulated was a group show that brought together a cross section of artists from different practices and organizations to transform London’s OXO Barge House with a series of multimedia installations, a cinema space, talks and creative interventions into the surrounding area.

Articulated explored our relationship to space with a collection of commissioned and curated works that engaged with the public through interviews and debate. Each of these works investigated the human condition through the real or imagined boundaries of our everyday lives.

It was a truly unique collaboration which explored the thresholds between public and private space, unraveling a multitude of human stories from London’s cultural metropolis.

ARTICULATED

Exhibition Signage: Millimetre

OBJECTS OF NO FIXED ABODE

Mixed media installation: Pete Codling

I’VE BEEN PLACES I’VE NEVER VISITED

Director: Russel Harris

Live Performance piece which took place in and around the Barge House and along the Southbank.

TRANSIT

Mixed media installation: Christopher Thomas Allen

PROTOCOL

Photographic & Video Installation

Featuring Photography by Chris Allen, Alice Ceresole, Lenka Clayton, Paul O’Connor, Brede Korsmo & James Price
Video Installation By Bilal Main

SINGLE STORY BUILDING

Interactive installation: Blast Theory, created in 2002.

TRUE COLD

Video installation: Blast Theory, created in 2002.

HOMAGE TO THE LOST

Video installation: Brede Korsmo

CITY FOR GRANTED

Video Installation: Tim Cowie

Interviews and field Recordings by Chris Allen, Brede Korsmo, Annie Kwan, James Price & Rob Rainbow
Photography by Chris Allen, Brede Korsmo, Annie Kwan, James Price & Rob Rainbow

CONVERSATION

Video installation: James Price & Lenka Clayton

This installation has also been edited as a film and has toured extensively appearing at international festivals including:
Britdoc, Oxford, July 2007
Hotdocs, Toronto, Canada. PDX, Portland, Oregon, USA, April 2008
Iranian International Documentary Festival, Tehran, October 2008
FLEXfest, Gainsville, Florida, USA, 2009

DIALOG

Mixed media installation: Christopher Thomas Allen

This installation continues to tour art exhibitions internationally:

Out Side The Box, Cornerhouse Gallery, Manchester, England, 2007
Media_City Seoul 2008 – the 5th International Media Art Biennale, Seoul, South Korea, 2008
Biennale Cuvee 09, A World Selection Of Contemporary Art, Linz, Austria, 2009

DEBATE

Mixed media installation: Christopher Thomas Allen & James Price

FROM CEREALS COME CIVILISATION

Video installation: Robert Rainbow

FOOD FOR LIVING THINGS

Mixed media installation: Robert Rainbow

CERBERES

Photographic installation: Marion Lefebvre

ARTICULATED LOUNGE

On the top floor of the exhibition there was an interactive lounge space and cinema curated by onedotzero festival. This contained interactive terminals with archive material supplied by the British Film Institute, sound installations by audio artist Scanner, a program of short films shown in a cinema space with additional screening programs from Halloween Society and a series of talks by guest speakers including the writer Ian Sinclair.

Concept: Christopher Thomas Allen, Robert Pyecroft-Rainbow & Annie Kwan
Curator: Christopher Thomas Allen
Producer: Annie Kwan

Curated by Christopher Thomas Allen as part of the Articulated Exhibition.

Photography by: by Chris Allen, Marion Lefebvre, Alice Ceresole,
Lenka Clayton, Paul O’Connor, Brede Korsmo & James Price

Domestic Archaeology was a cross-media art project created by The Light Surgeons that was exhibited at the Geffrye Museum in East London in 2006. The work on show was developed through a process of audio-visual journalism that explores the issues surrounding identity through the study of Londoners and their rich mixture of living spaces.

The project excavated personal stories, memories, objects and meanings that were re-assembled as multimedia installations, offering a reflection on the changing condition of domestic space as well as our more psychological boundaries associated with them.

This exhibition has been documented as a limited addition dual layer DVD, including a set of six postcards of artwork from the exhibition. Currently available from Magma books and the BFI store South Bank, London.

Collaborating Artists: Christopher Thomas Allen, Brede Korsmo, Robert Pyecroft-Rainbow & Tim Cowie
Original Concept: Christopher Thomas Allen & Robert Pyecroft-Rainbow
Production Director: Christopher Thomas Allen
Producer & research: Annie Kwan
Production Assistant: Rouzbeh Nafarieh
Animation: Tim Cowie
Exhibition Design: Millimetre
Concrete Wallpaper: Eric Barret
Workshops: Counterproductions
Smells: The Aroma Company
Print Artwork: IGMA & C3
Website design: Philip O’Dwyer

The Light Surgeons were commissioned to create a four screen audio visual peice to celebrate the re-opening of the Royal Festival Hall at the Overture weekend, Southbank, London on the 8th & 9th June 2007. The four films were projected across the south side of the Royal Festival hall on two nights as part of the re-opening festival.

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Director: Christopher Thomas Allen
Producer: Annie Kwan
Editor: Johnny Halifax
Artists: Brede Korsmo, Robert Pyecroft-Rainbow
Animation: blinkinLAB, Toby Harris & Tim Cowie
Audio Production: Jude Greenaway