Invoking the people in a call to power, Patti Smith’s CIRCA commission continues with a specially recorded performance of ‘People Have The Power’ and ‘Grateful’ recorded especially by the artist in New York:
“It’s a beautiful night, we have a new President and Vice President and our democracy seems to be quite intact. 2020 has been a Blakean year but I think the glad day is coming. This performance goes to everyone, it’s for everyone all over the world. Fred wrote it so that it might be embraced and it might inspire people globally, and it has.”
Set against a montage of footage that pays homage to individuals and organisations, past and present, who have used their voice to help create a better future (Shirley Chisholm; Kamala Harris; Greta Thunberg; Naomi Wadler; The Soup Kitchen, Holborn; The Emergency Designer Network, and many more) this 30-minute presentation combines music with poetry, and includes an electrifying performance of ‘Because The Night’ by Thigh High (Tom Rasmussen and Hatty Carman)
Free to watch below at (20:21GMT/15:21EST) on 20th January 2021.
Patti Smith has also created a series of four prints, each costing £100 excl.VAT in support of the #CIRCAECONOMY which endeavours to support the UK’s struggling creative community: https://shop.circa.art
Created by artist Josef O’Connor, CIRCA commissions a different artist each month to present new ideas that consider our world circa 2021. Each artist is invited to create a new work for Europe’s largest screen, offering an innovative and exciting way for people to engage with art, both outside and online, in a safe and socially distanced way.
