Clements’ work wrestles with common anxieties around incompleteness of knowledge, experience and achievements. Centred on the futile search for certainty of understanding and perceived hierarchies of knowledge, her humorous, reimaginings and reappropriations playfully explore the complex relationship between putative information and experiential understanding through sculpture, film and installation.
Clements’ work wrestles with common anxieties around incompleteness of knowledge, experience and achievements. Centred on the futile search for certainty of understanding and perceived hierarchies of knowledge, her humorous, reimaginings and reappropriations playfully explore the complex relationship between putative information and experiential understanding through sculpture, film and installation.
Her research draws upon archives, social media, mathematical formulas, art history and other established sources of knowledge to create work that questions accepted facts as markers of truth. Frequently sensual and often tongue in cheek the work exudes an ambiguous mix of the serious and the absurd.
Clements was overall winner of the GM arts prize 2018.
She has a fine art, practice based PhD, lectured for many years at the University of Salford, and was previously the Educational Director of Artists and Education CIC. As well as her arts practice Clements also works nationally to support artists and arts professionals through specialist coaching. For information about Jo’s coaching practice click HERE
Jo Clements lives and works in Manchester, UK.
Jo Clements works with sculpture, film and installation and has exhibited both nationally and internationally.
Recent residencies include a VR/AR lab residency with Collusion Cambridge, a winter residency at Cove Park, Scotland and a-n’s coaching for artists programme.
She is the overall winner of the GM Arts Prize 2018
EDUCATION
2010 - 2014 University of Salford Arts practice based PhD awarded October 2014
2005 – 2007 University of Salford, MA Contemporary Fine Art: Distinction
1995-1998 University of Salford BA Hons Visual Arts and Culture: 2:1
EXHIBITIONS
Solo
2016 OctoberWe Will Never As Humans Be Able To See 360° Caustic Coastal, Manchester.
2015 November Jo Clements : Retrospective, Bury Art Museum, Bury, Lancs.
2014 September The 9 Archives Project, Federation House, Manchester, UK
2014 May 100 Adapted Orphans, Bankley Gallery, Manchester, UK
2011 May ‘Resuscitation’, Camille Claudel hall, Clermont-Ferrand, France.
2004 March-May ‘ Misdirection’, Mid-Pennine Art Gallery, Burnley, Lancs
Selected Group
2018 May/June GM Arts Prize Shortlist exhibition, Stockport War Memorial Art Gallery. OVERALL WINNER
2018 Jan Fucksas : Evidence, Unit 4, Great Northern Tower, Manchester.
2018 Jan Rebel Daughters, The Point, Doncaster.
2017 October FILIA, London.
2017 June-July Greater Manchester Art prize Shortlist Exhibition, Manchester Chamber of Commerce
2017 May Flux Bath Fringe festival
2016 June-July Greater Manchester Art prize Shortlist Exhibition, Manchester Chamber of Commerce
2016 March Early Warning, Mark Devereux Projects, And Model Gallery, Leeds, UK
2016 March Aperture, Media City, Salford Quays, Manchester
2015 December Bring Your Own Beamer Space Gallery and LUX Moving Image, London
2015 October Bury Light Night, Commission. Bury, Lancs.
2015 September Bunker Screening, Salon Flux, London
2015 June ZAP Summer Exhibition, Zeitgeist Art Projects, London
2015 Jan Forbidden, Guerilla Galleries, London
2014 August Bundle of Sticks, Spode Factory, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs
2012 June ‘Secret Garden festival’ Media City, Salford
2012 March ‘Videoformés’ Sacred Trinity church Salford and Clermont-Ferrand, France
2012 March ‘Secret Places/Secret Spaces, Irwell Sculture trail.
2009 Oct-Nov ‘Text to Sketch’, Instituto Cervantes, Manchester Literature Festival.
2008 Jan ‘Instruct’, Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester.
2007 May – June ‘Identity’, Bath Fringe Festival, The Old Postal Museum, Bath.
2006 April – Nov ‘What Would You Do If..?’ Salford Museum and Art Gallery
2005 July ‘Counter Measure’, St Saviours Church, Highbury, London
2004 March ‘Introducing Islington Mill’ ,Islington Mill, Salford, Greater Manchester
2004 Feb ‘20’, The Chapman Gallery, University of Salford
2003 Nov ‘twoeightone at the northern’, Great Northern Building, Manchester
2003 Priceless, Shude Hill, Manchester
2001 Artist A4E New Media Residency, Zion Centre, Manchester.
2001 Artist Laboratory Exhibition, Chapman Gallery, University of Salford
2000 Goethe’s Oak Has Woodworm, LMN, Static Gallery, Liverpool
2000 Well Chuffed Art on the Bury to Rawtonstall Steam Train
CURATING
2012 March ‘Videoformés’ Sacred Trinity church Salford and Clermont-Ferrand, France
2009 Oct-Nov ‘Text to Sketch’, Instituto Cervantes, Manchester
2004-2006 Visual Arts Director, Step Up Festival, curating at various venues including Bridgewater Hall Manchester, Museum of Science and Industry and The Great Northern Manchester.
Sept 2003 – March 2004 Chapman Gallery and Glass Box, University of Salford.
PUBLISHED PAPERS
· Clements, J. (2014), Thesis title: ‘Adapted Orphans and Protected Histories: Time Based Media and the Moving Image Archive’. University of Salford Repository.
· Clements, J. (2012), ‘Time Out: An exploration of the possibilities for archived time-based media as a tool for exploration within a fine art practice based research enquiry’, Journal of Media Practice 13: 3, pp.239-253. ISSN: 1468-2753
· Clements, J. (2011), ‘Information, Instruction, Re-Appropriation: New Narratives from Existing Forms’, Avanca | Cinema pp.183-188. ISBN: 978-989-96858-1-9
CONFERENCE PAPERS
University of Cork September 2012 Alphaville “Cinema in the Interstices” Conference. Paper title ‘Adapted Orphans’.
University of Reading April 2012 Journeys Across Media Conference. Paper title ‘Time Out’.
AVANCA | Cinema July 2011. Avanaca, Portugal. Paper title, ‘Information, Instruction, Re-Appropriation: New Narratives from Existing Forms’.
SPARC University of Salford May 2011
Athens Institute for Education and Research June 2010 1st Annual International Conference on Fine and Performing Arts held in Athens, Greece. Paper title ‘Creative Academy:Reflective Stories’.
RIBA Feb 2008 in London as part of The National Arts Learning Network (NALN) ‘Widening Participation in the Arts ‘ Annual Conference. ‘CPD And Mentoring For Artists In The Early Stages Of Their Careers’ (co author Sam Ingleson)
Tate Britain Feb 2007 in London as part of The National Arts Learning Network (NALN) ‘Widening Participation in the Arts ‘ Conference. ‘Pyramids of Outreach’ (co author Sam Ingleson)
University of Edinburgh August 2006 ‘International Conference on the Arts in Society’ ‘No Loss Of Identity: A Response To Location’ (co author Sam Ingleson)
Manchester Metropolitan University May 2006 Aimhigher Annual regional conference ‘Vocational mentoring’ (co author Brian Percival)
EMPLOYMENT
Sept 2012 - present. University of Salford, School of Art and Design. Lecturer/Tutor for MA Contemporary Fine Art and MA Creative Education programmes.
Sept 2001 – June 2012 University of Salford, School of Art and Design. Various part time roles including Community Engagement and Outreach Programming Officer, External Project Management and Accreditation Coordinator.
Feb 2004 – 2015 Artsmark Validator and Moderator, Trinity College, London and Arts Council England. This is an annual freelance position that involves the assessment of schools Artsmark applications and visits to schools to provide supportive advice and guidance for improvement of their arts provision.
Jan 2003- Nov 2012 Co-Founder, Education Director, Artists and Education CIC.
Organisation that devised, delivered, monitored and evaluated artist’s residencies with schools and young people. Duties included managing artists, creating projects in collaboration with schools and young people’s organizations, securing project funding, developing a number of models of good practice and evaluative methodologies. Artists and Education collaborated with Creative Partnerships, Arts Council England, Salford City Council, Manchester City Council, University of Salford, MMU and many of the Arts and Heritage organizations in the North West.
