Extend my arms: Karl Murphy and collaborators

In this exhibition project developed from a residency in 2023 with ArtHouse Jersey, queer artists Karl Murphy, Lewis G Burton, Yasmine Akim, Dr. Adam Perchard, and Jack Killick draw inspiration from the work and lives of surrealist pioneers Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore who moved to Jersey in 1937 at a time of transformative global upheaval.

For Cahun and Moore, the Island provided a space to create an extraordinary body of work reflecting holistically on the self, earth and body.

I Extend My Arms is a space where poetic reflection and connection to the ancient heartbeat of Jersey serve to rekindle Cahun and Moore’s legacy amidst the challenges of current times, where many see fractured selves mirroring a world succumbing to the unrelenting force of capital.

For this contemporary group of queer artists, Jersey embodies both refuge and rebellion, offering a unique backdrop to probe the essence of selfhood in an era marked by disruption. Working with sound, video, sculptural installation, drawings and performance, this short run exhibition promises to create a beguiling world drawn from the queer body in visceral landscapes.

As part of the exhibition Karl Murphy and collaborators will be leading a series of workshops exploring themes present in the exhibition. The artists will also give a guided tour of the exhibition on Saturday 7th September at 4pm and a live performance night on Friday 13th September at 7pm. For more information, please check arthousejersey.je

Karl Murphy discovered the work of Cahun and Moore while he was at art school in London. Their work was presented as being foundational to contemporary art, particularly within both performance and playing with identity. Cahun and Moore made a wide variety of work from self-portraiture, sculpture, illustrations, poems and more. They shifted between images playing with gender and identity, to works embracing and pulling in the landscape around them. They represent resistance in many forms and led active campaigns of resistance against the Nazi’s following the occupation of the Island in 1940. Murphy and his collaborators feel that the relationship between Cahun and Moore was a central part of the work they were making and that is why through the project their relationship, as a group of queer artists making and living together, has been so important.

Karl hopes that this exhibition continues the argument that Jersey can be a site of creative reflection and that there are ways of seeing the world beyond utility and classification. He aims to both honour the legacy of Cahun and Moore and introduce the people of Jersey to a new generation of queer artists that are tackling similar themes and ideas. The namesake of the exhibition comes from Cahun’s “I extend my arms” where they are reaching out, pressing a stone monolith into their body.

Karl Murphy was born in Ireland but grew up in Jersey and has called London his home for around twelve years. His practice moves between poetry, sculpture, sound and socially engaged workshops. He also shows work in traditional gallery settings as well as large scale installations at queer raves and co-curated community focused exhibitions at Saatchi Gallery, in his role as learning officer. He has also shown performance work at the TATE Modern and Digital work as part of The National Gallery’s London Learning Programmes.

Karl chose from a network of artists he was familiar with and who each in their own way brought a different element to the process. He met writer and performer Dr Adam Perchard when they were both invited to take part in a project for artist Stuart Semple (creator of the pinkest pink) and it was his first time meeting another queer person from Jersey. Lewis G Burton is Murphy’s sister and the founder of the iconic Inferno which is a queer techno, rave art platform. Yasmine Akimis is a photographic artist who has been a mainstay of the queer art scene in London, as well as being a writer and teacher. Jack Killick, another Jersey born, makes incredible sculptural works and paintings and has just completed a residency with Hauser and Wirth.

Karl said “My hope is that anyone visiting will have a sense of wonder, of reflection on both themselves and the island. And a sense of pride for the legacy of Cahun and Moore, as well as hearing contemporary voices who are building on that history. We will also be running a series of workshops for community groups to engage with, we want to activate these ideas, to make them feel real and electric. I would say that even if you don’t have much of an interest in fine art that this show will have something for everyone. I also hope that the queer community across the Island, feel some connection with what we are trying to do.

“Growing up it felt as if there where little to no touchstones to make sense of how I was feeling, and I hope this exhibition shows to anyone feeling the same that there are others out there, we have always been here and always will. This show is for everybody, regardless of your background, it’s a chance to come together and reflect on both the heritage of the island, a collection of artists reflecting in a contemporary way, and hopes and dreams for the future.”

I Extend My Arms is an exhibition commissioned by ArtHouse Jersey and has received additional funding support from Arts Council England.