SPIKE MCLARRITY
Spike is a live art performance artist, painter, needle worker, film and photographer amongst many things he is also white rabbit. His work also includes working with different artists and performance artists in collaborations from across the world.
Spike and his alter ego (I am white rabbit) has been known to sit on a wall by the river Thames in South West London, or appear on the boundaries of his community every first of the month. This is an on going performance, greeting in the month ahead, based on the myth White rabbit, White rabbit, White rabbit. Regardless if its raining, snowing, sunshine you will find the rabbit sitting greeting the morning traffic, people heading to work, school, college. He has been doing this since November 2015, waving from 7am until 8am.
SPIKES STORY
2006 Spike did a foundation in the arts at Kingston University where he met his collaborator the artist, photographer Shaman Alex Chase White, and then continued with a three year fine art degree at Kingston. After graduating in 2010 Spike attended various live art workshops at Toynbee studios in London supported by Arts Admin who ran funded weekend workshops. As well as supporting artists such as, Charlie Murphy and Brian Catling and Dr Yoshiko Shimada. In 2011 Spike did a full time one year MA in performance and visual practice at Brighton University and passed with a Distinction in 2012, and currently practices as a full time live art performance artist, performing and holding exhibitions.
Spike does not receive any funding or support from art organisations or Lottery Funding or even Arts Council Funding. He is self funded, self motivated and proactive in the arts. Spike self funds a one month residency in Japan since 2015 where he travels and performs throughout Japan. Founder of Thames Artists since 2005 bringing local and international artists together. From 2010 Thames Artists now functions as a nomadic, transient group where group members collaborate working together with conceptual and performative ideas, to bring artists who live and work on the flow of the Thames River. Breaking down boundaries of what is expected of artists, what kind of visual art and performative art that is expected. The group comes and goes, contributing at a moment of time that the door of opportunity presents them.
Since 2014 he has lectured on how artists respond to the effects of the Japanese Tsunami at the Lecture Club based in London. In October 2016, Spike performed at Art Space Bar Buena in Tokyo, holding a solo exhibition of Queen B and the shrine to imperfection. Spike also performed with a local Tokyo band as white rabbit in Tokyo Tower on 29th October club333, that was televised live world wide from the Tower.
In September 2018 Spike made his first visit to the Philippines where he performed with the artist Crece Dimayuga Roldan and Sam Penaso and held artists talks and lectures in a local school. May 2019 Spike returned to Japan where he performed and exhibited his work in a local gallery. In November 2019 Spike was invited to take part in the first ever Islamabad Arts Festival in Pakistan where he won an award for his performance "Behind the mask of white rabbit becomes a shaman" This was his first time in Islamabad to a very warm welcome.
The IAF19 attracted 230 International artists as well as over 300 artists from all over Pakistan, it was an incredible achievement that was the vision of the renowned actor Jamal Sha. Spike met and spoke to the first lady of Pakistan as a British artist as well as attending tea in the garden of the President of Pakistan along with other artists. 2019 has been a fruitful but yet challenging year, this also saw his involvement with the local arts group called Barnes Artists. Spike has since moved on to focus back to his roots as a performance artist.
https://www.islamabadartfestival.com/
Islamabad Art Festival is built upon the foundation of cultural diversity that is so deeply embedded in the land that is now Pakistan, and in the people that are now Pakistani.
Art has the unique capability of enabling people to engage intimately with their natural and cultural heritage in a creative and critical manner. The spirit of creativity and innovation brings people together and strengthens society as a whole.
Islamabad Art Festival is built upon the foundation of cultural diversity that is so deeply embedded in the land that is now Pakistan, and in the people that are now Pakistani.
Art has the unique capability of enabling people to engage intimately with their natural and cultural heritage in a creative and critical manner. The spirit of creativity and innovation brings people together and strengthens society as a whole.