Dr Victoria Sharples

About

I am an artist, researcher and academic based across Yorkshire and Derbyshire. I am Co-Director of GLOAM (Gallery & Studios) in Sheffield’s Cultural Industries Conservation Area (CIQ). I am a Lecturer in the School of Arts at the University of Derby and Co-lead NMRG (the New Materialist Reading Group) with Dr Rebecca Howard.

My practice meditates on posthumanist performativity and ecological philosophies relative to macroscopic & microscopic matter. Research areas include: microperformativity, forensic architecture, (im)materiality, (im)perceptibility, the technoscientific and necro-ecologies/economies. I work with people and non-human bodies across spatial, temporal and linguistic situ facilitating international and interdisciplinary practice-led research projects with artists, scientists and spiritual practitioners. The works produced as part of this practice often take the form of time-sensitive performances where video, artefacts, photography and scores record the project though phonetic, numerical and audio-visual matter.

I am a Member of the University's Early-Career Academics Forum, DMARC (The Digital and Material Artistic Research Centre, the SLSA (Society of Literature, Science and the Arts) and The British Academy Early-Career Researcher Network (ECRN), British Art Network (BAN). She is on the Community Board for Bloc Projects as part of GLOAM.

Teaching responsibilities

L4 Introduction to Studio Practice
L4 Extended Contexts
L4 Contextualising Practice
L4 Experimentation and Curiosity
L5 Practising Theory
L5 External Professional Contexts
L6 Critical Inquiry
L6 Professional Practice

Professional interests

Practice-led Research
Interdisciplinarity
(Micro)Performativity
Participatory Practices
International Collaboration
Human and (Non) Human Performances
The Intersections of Art, Science and Spirituality
The Macroscopic and Microscopic
Representational Problematics
The Ethical, Economic and Economic
The Machinic and Biological
New Materialism
Diagrams and Written Scores
Necro-Ecologies/ Economies

Research interests

My practice meditates on posthumanist performativity and ecological philosophies relative to macroscopic and microscopic matter. Research areas include: microperformativity, forensic architecture, (im)materiality, (im)perceptibility, the technoscientific and necro-ecologies/economies. I work with people and non-human bodies across spatial, temporal and linguistic situ facilitating international and interdisciplinary practice-led research projects with artists, scientists and spiritual practitioners. The works produced as part of this practice often take the form of time-sensitive performances where video, artefacts, photography and scores record the project though phonetic, numerical and audio-visual matter.

Membership of professional bodies

British Academy Early-Career Researcher Network (ECRN)
British Art Network (BAN)
New Materialist Reading Group (NMRG)
Digital and Material Artistic Research Centre (DMARC)
Society for Literature, Science and the Arts (SLSA)
University of Derby's Early-Career Researcher Forum (ECRF)
Bloc Project's Community Board (as part of GLOAM)

Qualifications

PhD in Fine Art from Leeds Beckett University
MA (Distinction) – Performance from York St John University
BA (First-Class Honours) – Performance from York St John University

Recent conferences

2023 UnCommon Worlds III Conference – Navigating and Inhabiting Biodiverse Anthropocenes, Turku, Finland – Derby UK (Conference Committee / Working Group Member)

2022 ‘Our Civic Agreement as a University and the Role Research Plays in Having an Impact Locally’ with Dr Rhiannon Jones (Associate Professor/Civic), Amanda Baxendale (Head of Research and Innovation), Adam Doyle (Head of Business Engagement and Employability), and Helen Harrison (Senior Research Manager) (Presentation by Dr Victoria Sharples)

2022 ‘Interdisciplinary Research in the Creative and Cultural Industries', symposium with Valeria Carnevale (Architecture), Dr Rebecca Howard (Photography) and Dr Victoria Sharples (Performance), University of Derby (Co-authored Presentation)

2022 ‘Material, Economics and Ecology’, Civic-Lab Symposium, convened by Dr Rhiannon Jones at Artcore and Derby Theatre. (Presentation by Dr Victoria Sharples)

2022 ‘Material, Economics and Ecology’ at Derby’s Museum of Making with Jumana Manna, Laura Wilson, Dr Onya McCausland, Tony Butler, Rafael Pérez Evans, Sonia Levy and Ravi Agarwal. (Convened by Dr Victoria Sharples)

2021 – 'The (In)separability of Matter: On Prāṇa, Energy and Permeation', presented for the Society for Literature, Science and the Arts (SLSA). International Conference ON ENERGY at the 34th Annual Meeting and Exhibition at Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Paper by Dr Victoria Sharples)

Experience in industry

I am a Co-Director of GLOAM, a collectively-run exhibition and studio space located in Sheffield’s Cultural Industries Quarter Conservation Area (CIQ). GLOAM has professional connections through practice-led research, consultancy, commissions, HE teaching, collaborations, residencies, exhibitions, curation, event management, fundraising, communication and technician work with national industry partners.

Recent GLOAM exhibitions (funded by Sheffield City Council (SCC) and Arts Council England (ACE):

2023 Roo Dhissou's Courses for Discourses
2023 Two Queen Exchange Programme with GLOAM's studio-holders: Victoria Sharples, Stu Burke, Rose Hedy Squires, Thomas Griffiths, Sam Francis Read, Jack Ginno, Jonny Davey, Alice Hicken, Madeline Adams, Ross Oliver & Peter Martin.
2023 Undress me with your eyes... with Nisa Khan
2022 Creating Patterns with Dr Harold Offeh
2022 Beneath the Pewter Sky with Dan Chan, Charlotte Cullen, Gusty Ferro, India Garry, Kumbirai Makumbe, David Reynolds, Will Hughes, Conner Shields, Danielle Williams
2022 Figureheads: Bloc Projects Member’s Show with Dr Julia McKinley, Sam Hutchinson, Will Hughes & Duncan Poulton, curated by GLOAM
2022 Offering from the River with Dr Victoria Sharples
2022 Dr Onya McCausland’s Billboard Commission, Six Bells Red
2022 Forehead on Glass with Celeste McEvoy
2022 An Expanded Field with Nicola Bolton (UK), Kieran Brimm (UK), Stu Burke (UK), Deb Covell (UK), Ronan Dillon (IRL), Charlie Franklin (UK), Jack Ginno (UK), Philipp D Göbel (DE), Dan Hamer (UK), Alys Kuu (ES), Jane Morter (UK), Aslιhan Mumcu (TUR), Beth O’Grady (USA), Ismael Ortiz (PAN), Sean Pearce (UK), Molly Thomson (UK), Alison Tirrell (USA), Mark Titmarsh (AUS), Kees Van De Wal (NL), Wilma Vissers (NL), Just Yvette (NL) 2022 Two Queens Member’s Show with Gino Atwood, Daniel Cowlam, Mateus Domingos, Jack Halford, Daniel Sean Kelly, Shivani Khoshia, Nick Mobbs
2022 Jonny Davey’s Billboard Commission
2022 Doves and Crossbones with Alistair Wood
2021 GP Exchange Programme with GLOAM
2021 Blood from a Stone, School of the Damned with Mollie Balshaw, Maddie Banwell, Rebekah Beasley, John Carney James McColl, Thomas Griffiths, Campbell McConnell, Grace Collins, Imogen Rough, Liam Cosford, Natasha Eves, George Gibson, Liam Newnham, Craig David Parr, Luke Routledge
2021 FOCM: Spring-Summer with Flo Main
2021 Method-Lab Part Deux with General Practice with Nathan Baxter, Andrew Bracey, Rob Britt, Kate Buckley, Joana Cifre Cerdà, Ross Oliver, Nick Simpson
2021 Children’s Media Conference with TATO
2021 The Magician with Dr Stella Baraklianou
2021 MTPA (million tons per annum) with Joe Singleton

International experience

I have collaborated internationally with:

Dr Ramona Marasco at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (Saudi Arabia)
Professor Alexander Tzetlin, Dr Anna Zhadan, Dr Nickolay Usov and Konstantin Biyagov at The White Sea Biological Station (the Russian Federation)
Professor Ali Muzaffer Feyzioglu at Karadeniz Technical University (Turkey)
Nick Hobbs, an artist based in Istanbul (Turkey)
Yujin Ju, an artist based in Seoul (The Republic of Korea)
Professor Lena Håkansson The University Centre in Svalbard (Norway)
Musician Anil Shahi (Nepal)
Sagar Manandhar and Pratima Thakali from the Kathmandu University School of Art and Design

Additional interests and activities

In 2021, I was awarded two rounds of the Early-Career Researcher Development Fund (ECRDF). My position as an Early-Career Academic is supported by the SURE fund (Sustaining University Research Expertise).

Recent publications

2023 Journal Article: ‘Epitaphic Readings: Diagrams as (Re)incarnations’ (2023) to be published in Performance Research Journal (Published in Spring), Volume 27 Issue 7 ‘On Diagrams and the Diagrammatic’ edited by Dr Andrej Mircev. Published by Routledge Journals, Taylor & Francis Ltd.

2023 Photographs & Videos: 'Overcast' Exhibited as part of Format Festival.

2023 Artwork: 'St Andrews' shown at GLOAM's Exhibition Exhibition Exchange Programme at Two Queens Leicester.

2022 Solo Show and Artist Talk: 'Offering from the River'. Shared at GLOAM as part of the Out and About’s Sustainability Weekender (Co produced with David McLeavy, Kerry Campbell & Felicity Hoy) in the Cultural Industries Quarter (CIQ) and the Sheffield Showcase Festival 2022.

2022 Symposium and Film Screening. 'Material, Economics and Ecology' facilitated by me, held at Derby’s former Silk Mill (Museum of Making) and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Featuring: Jumana Manna, Laura Wilson, Tony Butler, Dr Onya McCausland, Rafael Pérez Evans & Ravi Agarwal.

2022 Artist Talk & Walk: ‘When we die, Where do we go?’ at Abney Park Cemetery, London, as part of the Anti-University Now 2022 Festival!!! with care worker, horticultural therapy volunteer and trainee Death Doula Katie Crabtree. Supported by Hackney Council.

2022. Paper abstract accepted for co-authored paper with Dr Rebecca Howard, Cumulus Association (Postponed)

2021 Essay 'On Symbiosis, Zoonosis' published in Horizon Journal, Edition Four (Published)

2021 'Blowing Water, Critical Care' with Curator Sunshine Wong and artist JJ Chan at Bloc Projects, Sheffield (Published)

2021 'The (In)separability of Matter: On Prāṇa, Energy and Permeation', presented for the Society for Literature, Science and the Arts (SLSA) (Published)