HFORESPIRIT
AWARD-WINNING, ROYAL ACADEMY-TRAINED, MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST, COMPOSER & SONGWRITER
THE MANDRAKE Hotel Welcomes Composer, Performer and Audiovisual Artist, HforSpirit to the Artist in Residence Programme – 8th to 15th July, 2024
Delve into the world of HforSpirit, a contemporary myth-maker and sonic alchemist, conjuring expansive sound worlds across different media, intersecting live performances with film, theatre and movement.
From Monday 8th to Sunday 15th July, The Mandrake will become HforSpirit’s own sonic canvas, with collaborative performances in the Masha Hari Theatre, and sound, image and video materialising across the hotel landscape.
Open Studio
You’re Invited
Journey To The Centre Of The Sun
Journey To The Centre Of The Sun is the first phase of a multimedia project by HforSpirit. Exploring the philosophical, historical and architectural complexities of the labyrinth, the artist will assemble the latest iteration of their Scratchproof Orchestra for a series of improvised performances excavating the speculative music of this structure in its infinitely branching forms.
Joining HforSpirit is a new cast of players, including art iconoclast and provocateur Solomon Garçon, AKA Curtly Thomas, experimental musician and vocalist Bianca Scout, movement artist, violinist and former Mandrake artist in residence Magnus Westwell, composer Nathan Coen and multidisciplinary improviser Kenichi Iwasa. Together they will chart the cartography of the labyrinth while accompanying its choreography, following its flow in the hopes of channelling the sounds emanating from within.
Transfiguring the lunations of the classical 7-lane formation of the labyrinth, sometimes associated with the lunar year, into petals, circadian circuitry formed around the sun, HforSpirit will guide the orchestra through a series of performances that signal the start of a passage through a maze, which is also a dream, which is also death, which is also a dance.
Explore HforSpirit’s Achievements
Eschewing conventional releases and recordings in favour of participatory playing and improvisation, the artist has performed at the Royal Albert Hall, the Dakar Biennale, Birmingham Symphony Hall, Sadler’s Wells, Turner Contemporary, King’s Place and at Berlin Atonal. They are the composer-in-residence of Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra.
They have presented audiovisual work at the ICA and V&A and their sound work has been sought out by Dior, Margiela and Balenciaga. As part of their residency at The White Hotel, Thee Birth, HforSpirit has developed Scratchproof Orchestra, an ever-growing collective of artists and non-obligatory jam circle that includes a rotating lineup of some of the world’s most exciting experimental musicians.
More About HforSpirit
HforSpirit, a prodigious talent, released their debut solo album at age 12 and has since evolved to blend neo-classical and electronic music. Their collaboration on “Honest Labour” with Space Afrika won UK Electronic Album of the Year in 2021. They’ve exhibited at ICA and the Dakar Biennale and contributed to Alexander McQueen’s runway and Magnus Westwell’s “SUNDER” at Sadler’s Wells.
As an artist, composer, and lecturer at London College of Fashion, HforSpirit pushes boundaries with projects like “UnTyMe,” featured at the London Short Film Festival and V&A. Currently, they’re composing for an Adrien Brody film and leading The White Hotel residency, including the Scratchproof Orchestra and “A Tidal Mass” commissioned for Turner Contemporary in Margate, 2024.
We look forward to welcoming you and inviting you to immerse yourself in our Artist in Residence programme with HforSpirit. Discover their creative process firsthand and witness the development of their latest work during this special engagement
The Mandrake’s Artist in Residence Programme
Curated and managed by Maguelone Marcenac @scanadully