Top image: Bikini Kill by Nicholas Abrahams. Courtesy of artist.

“There is no theme as such, these are just five artists that we are excited about,” remarks Pippa Brooks co-owner of M.Goldstein about Group Show, the gallery’s new art exhibition kicking off this week in East London.

M.Goldstein’s latest exhibition showcases five artists who, perhaps refreshingly, aren’t part and parcel of a singular scene or aesthetic. Brought together simply on account of taste, the exhibition features work across different mediums created at various times by the likes of Julia Fodor (aka Princess Julia), Nicholas Abrahams and Kingsley Ifill, as well as an exciting new collaborative project from Benjamin Kirchhoff and Andy Bradin.

Part two of three, below Hero meets Abrahams, who chats Riot Grrrl, his dog Mrs Shufflewick, and reminisces about his early filmmaking endeavours,.

“[we started] filming all these bands like Huggy Bear and Bikini Kill and we ended up making pop videos for some of them, just because we were there. This was before mobile phones and the internet! We put the fanzine out on VHS.”

Zoe Whitfield: Hey Nicholas, what’s inspiring you in 2016?
Nicholas Abrahams: Mainly my dog, Mrs Shufflewick AKA Shuff, but also, David Attenborough, Roxy Music, Shirley Collins, all sorts of stuff on Radio 4, my girlfriend, a book called We Have Always Lived in the Castle, another book The Wind in the Willows, Strange Attractor press, Jeremy Deller… Uh oh, enough, this is becoming like an Oscar’s ‘thank you’ speech!

ZW: Slightly… You’re a filmmaker and visual artist, which means you work across several mediums. Do you have a favourite?
NA: I guess film. I’ve been reading a bit about the way early cinema had its roots partially in the work of magicians, be it Houdini or George Melies, and I still feel there is magic in moving images. People love watching moving images, being told stories. 

ZW: And you’ve directed music videos for the likes of Sigur Ros, as well as collaborating with Jeremy Deller. What initially led you behind the camera?
NA: It’s all coming flooding back now you ask. I always loved alternative music, and also always loved arty films, and could never understand why there were so many cool underground bands and music scenes, but there was not a film equivalent in the UK. So me and a friend went and interviewed all these post-punk no wave filmmakers in the USA like Beth B, Richard Kern, Chris Kraus and Nick Zedd about how they had made strange little angry films, mainly on super 8, and showed them in clubs with bands like Sonic Youth.

Back in the UK, I used to go to lots of gigs with my friend Mikey Tomkins, especially riot grrrl ones, and, in what was a rather foolish move, decided that we had to make a fanzine, but on video, so started filming all these bands like Huggy Bear and Bikini Kill and we ended up making pop videos for some of them, just because we were there. This was before mobile phones and the internet! We put the fanzine out on VHS. 

“I recently visited a yew tree wood near Worthing, where the trees are between one and two thousand years old, and their survival made Donald Trump’s election victory seem slightly less significant, thankfully.”

ZW: Where did your involvement with this new show at M.Goldstein arrive from?
NA: I was lucky enough to have met Pippa Brooks many years ago, and have spent many hours or days bending her ear when she was trapped behind the counter at one of her subterranean boutiques in Soho. A while back Pippa and Nathaniel Lee Jones unearthed some amazing work by an outsider artist of sorts called Reginald Alan Westaway, which really impressed me. They both have an eye for the unusual and an enthusiasm for things most others would probably not notice, so I know they will have put together a fantastic show of unusual artists!

 ZW: Can you tell me a bit about the relationship between your work and the cycle of nature, and also your own relationship with the latter?
NA: It’s just one of the things that brings me great happiness currently. I took Mrs Shufflewick for a walk this morning and the colours of the leaves were so intense! When you take a dog out for a walk every day, you really see that cycle of nature through the seasons… even in Tooting! I recently visited a yew tree wood near Worthing, where the trees are between one and two thousand years old, and their survival made Donald Trump’s election victory seem slightly less significant, thankfully. 

ZW: You’re showing a film you made with the folk singer Shirley Collins. What was it like working with Shirley?
NA: She is just a lovely person, (as is her musical director Ian Kearey, who also appears in the film). I originally met her through a friend called David Tibet. I wanted her to play the part of a snail in a short film, as I wanted someone whose voice had a special resonance. I was so sure she would think I was some chancer and wasting her time, but the opposite was true, and she could not have been more helpful. She is an inspiration – she’s so kind and gentle, and yet uncompromising about the music. And her voice! She seems like an instrument for channeling all these amazing folk songs, which are so in touch with nature and a hidden history of England.  

ZW: So finally, what’s the best thing about being part of a group show?
NA: It’s a bit like being in a pop group as opposed to performing as a solo artist, i.e. not too stressful! Hopefully this group will be like… Roxy Music? When Eno was still in it? 

M Goldstein‘s group show runs from 1st December until 14th December at 67 Hackney Rd, E2 8ET.

Find more information on Nicholas Abrahams here.