Sean Dower works with sculpture, film and video, live performance, photography and sound. Much of his work draws on his historical involvement in live performance.
Dower began making performances in the early 1980s as part of the UK 'industrial' music scene and went on to work with the radical performance art group Bow Gamelan Ensemble. He studied Sculpture
at Camberwell School of Art, London and attended the residency programme of the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam. Dower and has been making exhibitions in galleries, museums and other contexts since the early 1990's.
Selected exhibitions and performances:
2019 - PLUNK, BOUM, KRASH, ZZZT. Laure Genillard gallery, London UK 2017 - A Conversation... Dom Omladine, Belgrade, Serbia 2015 - On Air / Off Air. Beaconsfield Arts, London UK
2012 - The Voyeur. De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill UK
2010 - Musik für Barbaren und Klassiker. Netwerk Centre, Aalst, Belgium
2006 - Single Shot. Tate Britain UK 2006 - Break it Down - A Performance - Timothy Taylor Gallery, London UK
2001 - Audiopathology - W139 Amsterdam, NL
1998 - New Video Art from Great Britain - MOMA New York USA
1997 - No Room in Hell - Matt's Gallery, London UK
1997 - Against - Anthony d'Offay Gallery, London UK
Study:
1988 - 1991 BA hons Fine Art (Sculpture) Camberwell School of Art, London UK
1986 - 1988 Foundation Studies in Art and Design, Walthamstow College, London UK
Residencies and fellowships: 1993 - 1995 Residency programme of the Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam NL 2013 - Resdency, Constructed with Intention. Cornelius Foundation, Lagamas, France - Residency, Hotel El Ganzo hotel, Puerto Los Cabos, Mexico
2015 - Residency, Beaconsfield, London UK
2019 - Henry Moore Institute Fellowship, Leeds UK
Solo Exhibitions:
2019 - PLUNK, BOUM, KRASH, ZZZT. Laure Genillard gallery, London UK
2017 - A conversation along the highway of Brotherhood and Unity. Dom Omladine, Belgrade, Serbia
2015 - ON AIR. Beaconsfield, London UK 2012 - The Voyeur. De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill on Sea UK - Gallery Vela, London UK 2011 - Southard Reid Gallery, London UK 2008 -'K48 Presents'Vienna, Austria 2001 - Project Space, Centraal Museum, Utrecht NL
- 'Audiopathology', W139 Gallery, Amsterdam NL
1999 - 'Other Spaces', Lokaal 01, Antwerp, Belgium
1998 - 'Rorschach' Exedra, Hilversum NL
- 'Room in Hell', Matt’s Gallery, London UK (for 'Backspace’ programme)
1997 - Portfolio Kunst AG, Vienna, Austria
1997 - 'No Room in Hell'. Matt's Gallery, London UK (review here in Frieze magazine)
Selected Group Exhibitions:
2023 - Artists Against The Bomb, The United Nations building and the Judd Foundation, New York USA
- Billboard project: Artists Against The Bomb, SITE Santa Fe, New Mexico USA
2021 - 'Can we ever know the meaning of these objects'. Gallery 46 London, UK
- < Open Window > Spoleto, Italy
2020 - BLOW-UP I: Experiments in Photography, Laure Genillard gallery, London UK
- Feedback Loops, Gallery 46, London UK
2019 - Zapp Magazine /Zapp Magazine Club Night, Kunstverein, Amsterdam NL
2018 - See Your World in Ours IKON Gallery and Supersonic Festival, Birmingham, UK (Curated by Mark Titchner)
- Art Night, London UK
- STREAM STREET, Institut Aplauz, Belgrade, Serbia 2017 - LIMINALITY, Gallery 46, London UK 2016 - AUTONOMY - Gallery 46, Whitechapel London UK
- ResonanceEXTRA (radio shows). Gravity Waves - 26th March 2016 & 28th May 2016
2015 - The Greatest Show on Earth. Shoreditch, London. 14-17 October 2015, with Kieron Leonard and 1234 records
- Dear Serge - Offsite at Project 78, St Leonards (with De la Warr Pavilion) UK
- POOL - Cafe Gallery Projects, London UK - Strangelove Media Festival. Central St Martins, London UK
2014 - Revolver II (with Craig Barnes). Live transmision - Matt's Gallery, London UK - Monomania Festival. Aid & Abet & Cambridge Junction. Cambridge UK - '/seconds' - Sharjah Art Foundation, Sharjah - Interview with Bruce McLean, Firstsite, Colchester UK
2013 - The World in a Box, A Bittersweet Salon. Margate UK
- Constructed with Intention. Cornelius Foundation, Lagamas, France
- El Ganzo hotel (2 permananent commissions) Puerto Los Cabos, Mexico
- DISCONNECTED (The left hand doesn't know...) - Baltic 39, Newcastle upon Tyne UK
- Body Politic - The Art of Performnce (screening). Arts Pavilion, Bournemouth UK
- Shape Gallery, London UK
2012 - Hair of the Dog. Block 336, London UK
- One Take Film Festival - Zagreb, Croatia
- Change the World or Go Home - Solent Showcase, Southampton UK
2011 - Change the World or Go Home - Downstairs Gallery, Great Brampton House, Herefordshire UK - 'Dimensions in British Contemporary Art’, various venues – India - Glynn Vivian Art Gallery, Swansea UK 2010 - 'A Snowball Effect’ Mains d’Oeuvres St Ouen. France
- 'Taps: Improvisations with Paul Burwell' Matt's Gallery at Dilston Grove, London UK
- 'Keep me Posted', Posted Projects, London UK
- 'Musik fur Barbaren und Klassiker' Netwerk Centrum, Aalst, Belgium - 'Riff-Raff', Q - Lower John Street, London UK
- 'PARTY!'- The New Art Gallery Walsall UK
- 'Film / Video / Performance' Wimbledon Space, London UK
2009 - ‘Royal Academy of Arts Summer Show’ - London UK
- ‘Röck’ Galerie Erich Mircher, Paris, France 2008 - 'Brown Noise'. Maurice Einhardt Neu Gallery, London UK
- ‘Party at the Moontower’. Road Agent Gallery, Dallas USA
- 'Noise' George Rodger Gallery, Maidstone UK
- ‘Nothing Moments’ Public Trust Gallery, Dallas USA
2007 - ‘Post Paolo Futurum’ Museum of Breda, Breda NL
- ‘Nothing Moments’ Steve Turner Contemporary, Los Angeles USA
- ‘Nothing Moments’ Silvermann Gallery, San Francisco USA
- ‘Screenshow’ Meeting House Square. Dublin, Eire
- ‘Single-shot’ Various venues in UK & Eire
2006 - ‘Single-shot’ Tate Britain, London UK
- ‘Public Utilities’ South London Gallery (screening for Chris Burden exhibition)
- ‘Summertime’ David Patton Los Angeles USA
2005 - 'Speedorama', Drive in Cinema, Oslo & Touring Norway
- 'Wonderings', The Great Unsigned, 47 Great Eastern Street, London UK
- ‘Les Merveilles du Monde’, Dunkerque Museum of Fine Arts, France
- ‘Ab Ovo’, Steven Wolf Fine Arts, San Francisco, CA, USA
2004 - ‘A Temporary Monument to David McComb’ STUK, Leueven. Belgium
- ‘Video Hits, Art & Music Video’. Queensland Art Gallery. Australia.
- ‘Artist’s Films on Music Culture’. National Film Theatre, London UK.
- ‘Clerkenwell Film and Video Festival’ (London) - The Story of Dick Donkeys Dawn.
(Short-listed for Ken Russell short film award)
- ‘Schabbernak’ - Netwerk Gallerie, Aalst. Belgium (with guy Bar-Amotz).
2003 - ‘The Greatest show on Earth’ Metropolitan Galleries, Folkestone UK
2002 - ‘Us and Them’, Great Eastern Hotel. London UK
- ‘Air Guitar’, Milton Keynes Gallery (And touring UK)
- ‘Song Poems’ Rosamund Felson Gallery, Los Angeles USA
2001 - ‘Century City’ (Flag), Tate Modern, London UK
- ‘Song Poems’, Leslie Cohen & Brown Gallery, New York. USA
2000 - ‘Become Like Me’, Stills Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland (& touring)
- ‘Point of View’, Richard Salmon Gallery, Londo. UK
- ‘Video Art from Great Britain’ - Sao Paolo, Brasil and touring South America.
1999 - ‘Touch of Evil’ – Metronom (Foundation Raphael Tous) Barcelona, Spain
- ‘Pallid House’, W139 Gallery, Amsterdam NL
- Rosamund Felson Gallery, Los Angeles USA
- ‘Fourth Wall’, Outdoor screening - South Bank Centre, London UK
- ‘to be continued >.’ - Walsall Museum and Art Gallery UK
1998 - ‘New Video Art from Great Britain’. Museum of Modern Art, New York USA
- ‘Places to Stay’, Bureau Friedrich, Berlin, Germany
- ‘UK Maximum Diversity’ - Gallerie Krinzinger, Vienna & Bregenz, Austria
- ‘Backspace’ - Matt’s Gallery, London. UK
1997 - Gallerie Krinzinger, Vienna. Austria.
- Montreal International Festival of Cinema and New Media, Canada
- ‘Sean sells subliminals’ - Factual Nonsense – Live Stock Market, London UK
1996 - ‘BMW 325i' - Crawford Municipal Art Gallery, Cork, Eire
- ‘Against’ - Anthony D’Offay Gallery, London UK
- ‘Rational Behaviour’ - The Tannery, London UK (Curator & exhibitor)
- ‘I Beg To Differ’ - Milch Gallery, London UK
- ‘Pandemonium’ - ICA, London UK
1995 - ‘Lost Property’ - W139 Gallery, Amsterdam NL & The Lost Goods Building, London UK
(Co-curator / exhibitor)
1994 - ‘In Collaboration with’, Lokaal 01, Breda NL
1991 - ‘SAFE’ - Regent’s Wharfe, London UK
- '15/1', Melania Basarab, London UK
Audio releases and air-play:
2021 -'1st Generation'- electronic music by Sonofapup 1995-2000. Remastered digital album release -'sɜrbərəs'- electronic music by Sonofapup 2001-2004. Remastered digital album release - 'IOS' - electronic music by Sonofapup 2009-2015. Remastered digital album release. 2016 - ResonanceEXTRA with the Spirit of Gravity (radio). Gravity Waves - 28th May 2016 - ResonanceEXTRA with the Spirit of Gravity (radio). Gravity Waves - 26th March 2016 2015 - 'Open The Window' - Track 'Taxi Argument' featured on Linear Obsessional Recordings compilation 2014 - 'Minotaur'- electronic noise music by Sonofapup. Digital album release 2013 - The Curfew Recordings (1984). CD release, March 2013 on Harbinger Sound - HARBINGER110 2012 - Death Magazine 52 - double vinyl disc, 2012 on Harbinger Sound – HARBINGER078 2010 - The Ultimate Brown Sound Record - 12 inch brown vinyl record. Produced with Netwerk Centrum, Belgium. 2004 - Dick Donkeys Dawn (1997-1999) - remixes by Dick. DVD released by Back Fur Records.
1984 - Curfew Recordings with John Smith and John Mylotte (audio cassette).
1983 - Death Magazine 52 / SHC (audio cassette)
Performances:
2019 - ’33 1/3 rpm’ (#3) for Zapp Magazine Club Night, Kunstverein, Amsterdam NL
2018 - Live percussion performance for Carla Fernandez’ Fashion in Motion, V&A Museum, London, UK
2017 - ’33 1/3 rpm’ (#2) , Breturn, Kabinet Múz, Brno, Czech Republic - The Harrangue, Long Player Day, London
2016- Two performances: OMS & ’33 1/3 rpm’ (#1). Linear Obsessional label night at Vinyl Deptford, London 2014 - Monomania. Aid & Abet / Cambridge Junction. Cambridge, UK.
2013 - '1513 A Ship's Opera' Thames Festival - London, UK.
2013 - Performance - commissioned by the Cornelius Foundation, Lagamas France
2012 - 'The Voyeur' (series of 3 performances on St Simeon's drum riser) at de la warr pavilion - Bexhill, UK.
2011 - Late at Tate. Performance by Bag of Blood at Cabaret Apocalyptica 2010 - Cabaret Futura. The Paradise Club - London. UK - Live soundtrack/performance for a film by Charlotte Moth. At Halle Fuer Kunst, Lüneburg. Germany
- 'Donder op Dender (a blizzard of noise). Netwerk Centrum, Aalst. Belgium 2009 - ‘Röck’ (The Horns of Dilemma) - Galerie Erich Mircher, Paris. France 2008 - ‘Ghost Drummer’ – Maurice Einhardt Neu Gallery, London. UK. 2007 - ‘20 pieces of silver’ – IKON Gallery, Birmingham. UK.
- ‘Tribute / Wake’ for Paul Burwell (1949-2007), State 51, London. UK
- ‘3 on the floor’ - The Klinker, London. UK
2006 - ‘Break it Down’. Timothy Taylor Gallery, London. UK (With Richard Wilson)
- ‘Rational Lo-Tech’, Bethnal Green Working Men’s club, London. UK
- ‘Four on the Floor’ – 'How to improve the world', Hayward Gallery, London. UK.
- ‘Drum duet II’ – Barbican Curve Gallery, London. UK(with Richard Wilson)
2005 - ‘Audio Addiction’, Curator & performer - Delfina Studios, London. UK
(With Guy Bar-Amotz, z’ev, Natsuki Uruma, Richard Wilson)
2004 -‘Drum Duet’. With R. Wilson. Wapping Pumping Station, London. UK
- The mobile DJ (with G.B.Amotz) - For the exhibition Schabbernak at Netwerk Gallerie, Aalst. Belgium
2002 - Performance for ‘Song Poems’ exhibition - Palace Theatre, Los Angeles. USA
1999 - Live Stock Market, Factual Nonsense, Southbank, London. UK(Drum Tent with R. Wilson)
1997 - 1999 - ‘Dick Donkeys Dawn’ - The band (with G. Starr and O. Hangl).
1996 - 1997 - Interspecies Lovechild, (with Matthew Collins) Touring.
1994 - Hot Music, performance at The Garage, Rijsakademie Van Beeldenden Kunsten< Amsterdam NL
1988 - 1991 - Bow Gamelan Ensemble, touring internationally (with Paul Burwell, Anne Bean, Richard Wilson)
1988 - Performer: 'Self Winding' with Paul Wong, Edge 88, London UK
1984 - Performance / recordings: Curfew Recordings with Metgumnerbone (various sites Newcastle Upon Type, UK)
1983 - Performance / recordings: Death Magazine 52 (London Musicians Collective, Richard Strange's Slammer, London etc)
Select Bibliography: Monumental Guns and Their Targets by Sean Dower, The Everyday Press, London 2022 Soanyway Magazine edition #8, feature on Zou Zou's Mime Reconstructed. January 2021
The Brooklyn Rail, CRITICS PAGE, notes on '33 1/3 rpm'. Nov. 2018
Sean Dower (Artist Monograph), Dusan Savič (ed), Jo Melvin (essay), Dom Omladine Beograda / Legat Franklin, Belgrade. 2017
Video interview by Santiago Maza for online Mexican magazine Limulus, 2013
Jane Won, ‘Sean Dower’ (article on The Voyeur), De La Warr Pavilion Magazine, Summer 2012
Things to cover in a drum lesson... Article for Artist's Catalogue: Charlotte Moth / Serralves Foundation, Porto. 2011 Time Out - April 2011. Review of solo exhibition at Southard Reid, London Review of Musik für Barbaren und Klassiker at: we-make-money-not-art.com
Vagabond Holes: David McComb and the Triffids 2009 (2 pages) ISBN 9781921361623
Nothing Moments Short Story Collection 2007 (2 illustrations) ISBN 0781934500231
Frieze - March 2008. Review of 'Noise' Modern Painters - March 2007. Review of Single-shot / Automaton.
The Times - 08/11/06 Review of Single-shot / Automaton.
‘Les Merveilles du Monde’ - Exhibition Catalogue, Musee des beaux Arts (Dunkirque)
The Wire, Issue 267, May 2006 – Review of ‘Break it Down’
STUK Book Visual Arts 2000-2005. ISBN 90-8108151-9
‘Ab Ovo’ - http://abovoproject.stevenhull.com/
‘Video Hits, Art and Music Video’ Queensland Art Gallery (Aus). ISBN 1876509856
‘To be continued >’ Artists interventions in the Public Realm. ISBN 0-7134-8794-1
‘We Build New Sentences’ W139 Gallery, Amsterdam. ISBN 90 75387 03 02
‘Art Pop City’ (Bureau Friedrich, Berlin) ISBN 3-934823-02-05
Art and Text, Oct-Nov 2001. Review of Song Poems.
Song Poems, Catalogue 2001. Produced by Steven Hull. ISBN: 0-9670913-1-4
No FuN without U: The Art of Factual Nonsense (1 photo) ISBN: 18899858806
Frieze, Issue 51, March 2000. Review of ‘to be continued’ (1 reproduction).
Scotland on Sunday, 20th Feb 2000. of Review of Become like Me.
Metronom, 1998 - 1999. Catalogue for Fundacio Raphael Tous.
E S Magazine, 6th Aug ‘99. Cover article on art Bands - Dick Donkeys Dawn
Architect’s Journal, 15th Oct. 1998. Review of ‘SITE’ exhibition. Frieze Magazine march - April .98 (issue 39) ‘Review of ‘No Room in Hell’
Time Out. Nov 26 - Dec 3 1997. Review of ‘No Room in Hell’
Time Out Nov. 1996 - Review of Rational Behaviour
Art Monthly, June 1996. Review of ‘I Beg To Differ’
Time Out, July 1995. Review of ‘Lost Property’
‘ZAPP’ Video Magazine, Nov. 1994 - Amsterdam.
Lecturing since 1996: Central St Martins College of Art and Design, London UK
Chelsea College of Art and Design, London UK
University of Brighton UK
Goldsmiths College, London UK
Sotheby's Institute, London UK
Paco das Artes, Sao Paolo, Brazil
National College of Art and Design, Dublin, Ireland
Academy of Fine Arts Oslo, Norway
