Nathan Walker
Information
Nathan Walker is an artist and writer from West Cumbria, UK.
Nathan works across and between performance art and poetry, exploring both the body and the page as sites for vocal exploration and the manipulation of sound and speech.
Their performances often take place over extended durations, sometimes several hours, during which time Nathan constructs spaces of intense listening and attention. They often describe their work as ‘action poetry’, reviving the term associated with sound poetry to consider experiments with language as physical, material and embodied. They have performed internationally at festivals and galleries including Finland, USA, Germany, Italy and the UK.
Their scores for vocal performances use collage, writing constraints and descriptions of previous performances to generate new approaches to reading, vocalisation and performance. Their scores and poetry have been published in books, magazines and journals most recently in the anthology 100 Queer Poems edited by Mary Jean Chan & Andrew McMillan (Vintage 2022), Prototype Anthology 5 (UK), Tripwire (USA), Pamenar Magazine Online (UK), and The Queer Anthology of Wilderness (Pilot Press).
Their first collection of poetry, Skirting (2024), is due to be published by Broken Sleep Books.
They have published two books of language-based artworks, Condensations & Action Score Generator.
Condensations was published in 2017 by Uniformbooks as a book-length performance score and visual poem. Condensations arranges found-text from the Armitt Museum library and archive, as a collection of slow-collage-word-terrains where language is overlaid in dense textual marks to be navigated by the reader. Condensations was constructed following an Arts Council funded residency at the Armitt Museum in Ambleside, Cumbria and led to a commission for BBC Radio 3’s poetry programme The Verb. This book length score for vocal performance was listed as one of the The White Review’s Books of The Year (2017).
Their book of computer generated performance scores, Action Score Generator, was published by If P Then Q in 2015 and exhibited as part of Conceptual Poetics exhibition at the Poetry Library.
Between 2009 and 2019 Nathan co-founded and co-curated the arts organisation Oui Performance with artist Victoria Gray. Together they presented a series of performance art events in York, North Yorkshire programming over 50 artists to produce new performance works.
Nathan’s PhD considered the relationship between performance art and poetry. They are senior lecturer of time-based practices and course lead for Fine Art at York St John University.
Books
Skirting (2024) Broken Sleep Books
Condensations (2017) Uniformbooks, Devon
Action Score Generator (2015) if p then q, Manchester
Recent Publications
2023 Poetry & Audience
2023 Prototype Anthology 5
2022 Pamenar Magazine
2022 100 Queer Poems
2021 Jarg Issue 3
2021 Babel Tower Notice Board
2021 101 Words for Edwin Morgan
2020 Practice Sharing
2020 Futch Press Blog
2020 Tripwire 16
2020 A Queer Anthology of Wilderness
2019 Blackbox Manifold 23
2019 Amberflora Issue 8
2019 Datableed Issue 11
2019 Mantis Journal
2018 A Queer Anthology of Rage
2018 Cumulus Journal Issue 2
2018 Uniformannual
2018 Gorse Magazine Issue 9
Selected Commissions & Residencies
2017 The Verb, BBC Radio 3, Broadcast 03/03/17
2016 Armitt Museum & Gallery, Ambleside, Cumbria
2014 Performance Space, London
2011 Project Space Leeds, Leeds
Awards
2020 Coward Foundation, Analogue Photography Grant
2016 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2007 AHRC Professional Preparation Masters Scheme
Skirting (2024) Broken Sleep Books
Condensations (2017) Uniformbooks, Devon
Action Score Generator (2015) if p then q, Manchester
Recent Publications
2023 Poetry & Audience
2023 Prototype Anthology 5
2022 Pamenar Magazine
2022 100 Queer Poems
2021 Jarg Issue 3
2021 Babel Tower Notice Board
2021 101 Words for Edwin Morgan
2020 Practice Sharing
2020 Futch Press Blog
2020 Tripwire 16
2020 A Queer Anthology of Wilderness
2019 Blackbox Manifold 23
2019 Amberflora Issue 8
2019 Datableed Issue 11
2019 Mantis Journal
2018 A Queer Anthology of Rage
2018 Cumulus Journal Issue 2
2018 Uniformannual
2018 Gorse Magazine Issue 9
Selected Commissions & Residencies
2017 The Verb, BBC Radio 3, Broadcast 03/03/17
2016 Armitt Museum & Gallery, Ambleside, Cumbria
2014 Performance Space, London
2011 Project Space Leeds, Leeds
Awards
2020 Coward Foundation, Analogue Photography Grant
2016 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2007 AHRC Professional Preparation Masters Scheme
Recent Exhibitions & Performances
2024 Queercall, Folkestone
2023 An Elastic Continuum, S1 Artspace Sheffield
2022 Emergency 22, Manchester
2022 Surrey Poetry Festival
2022 BIFPA, Belfast
2022 Vessel Gallery, York
2021 Interval ° 11, Germany
2021 Spill Yer Tea 5 [online]
2020 Slant, Forms in Flux [online]
2019 Research Pavillion, 58th Venice Biennale
2018 State of Move, Helsinki
2018 Poetry Emergency, Manchester
Recent Talks & Lectures
2022 In Conversation with John Court, BIFPA, Ulster University
2021 Artists Talk for Leeds University
2021 Language Based Research Gathering: A Collateral Reading
2020 Artists Talk at School of Art Institute, Chicago, IL.
2017 Mountainsides: On Composition, Artists Talk at University of Leeds
2017 Lilies Under the Tongue, presented at Queering Ritual, York St John University, York
2024 Queercall, Folkestone
2023 An Elastic Continuum, S1 Artspace Sheffield
2022 Emergency 22, Manchester
2022 Surrey Poetry Festival
2022 BIFPA, Belfast
2022 Vessel Gallery, York
2021 Interval ° 11, Germany
2021 Spill Yer Tea 5 [online]
2020 Slant, Forms in Flux [online]
2019 Research Pavillion, 58th Venice Biennale
2018 State of Move, Helsinki
2018 Poetry Emergency, Manchester
Recent Talks & Lectures
2022 In Conversation with John Court, BIFPA, Ulster University
2021 Artists Talk for Leeds University
2021 Language Based Research Gathering: A Collateral Reading
2020 Artists Talk at School of Art Institute, Chicago, IL.
2017 Mountainsides: On Composition, Artists Talk at University of Leeds
2017 Lilies Under the Tongue, presented at Queering Ritual, York St John University, York
Education
2019 PhD University of Salford, Manchester, UK - Thesis: 'Action Poetry: The Vocal-Body in Performance Art'
2013 Recognised Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
2008 MA in Performance Writing, Dartington College of Art, Devon, UK
Teaching & Workshops
2018 - Current - Senior Lecturer in Fine Art (Course Lead) & Photography at York St John University
2010 - 2018 Lecturer in Performance at York St John University
2014 Site, Writing, Noise, Three-Day Taught Workshop for Level 1 & 2 Students, with Roy Claire Potter at L’ecole Beaux Arts Nantes, France
2014 Action / Object, Two-Day Taught Workshop for Level 4 & 5 Students, with Roy Claire Potter, at L’ecole Beaux Arts Nantes, France
Peer-Reviewed Chapters & Journal Articles
Walker, N. (2023) ‘Writing Performances of the Vocal-Body’, Journal of Writing in Creative Practice 16:1, pp.67-84
Walker, N. (2023) ‘Some Queer Zines’, In The Zine Symposium Zine (2023) Edited by Charlene Clempson & Nathan Walker, York, UK.
Walker, N. (2017) ‘Action Score Generator’, Journal of Writing in Creative Practice 9: 3, 2017, pp. 295 – 297
Walker, N. (2017) ‘Write Knowing: On John Court’, In John Court: An Idea of Performance a Idea of Art (2017) Finland, Frame Contemporary Art.
Walker, N. (2016) Condensations, Uniformagazine Issue 7, ISSN: 2056-6301
Walker, N. & Gray, V. (2015) Oui Performance: Performance Art in the City of York. In Carmichael, Y. & Crouch, A. (2015) 'Unruly Utterances: Participation, Criticality and Compass Festival 2014', Live Art UK & Compass Live Art. pp. 31 - 33.
Walker, N. (2014). 'Permutation and randomness in the Action Score Generator’, Journal of Writing in Creative Practice 7: 1, 2014, pp. 213–221.
Reason, Dorey-Richmond, Gray & Walker (2014). ‘Making Performance within the Institution: Documentation, Reflection and Production’, in Hidden Archives ed. Glen McGillivray. Amsterdam: Peter Lang. pp 149-171.
Walker, N. (2013). ‘Transitional Materialities and the Performance of JavaScript’, Performance Research Volume 18 (5), 2013, ‘On Writing & Digital Media’ London, Routledge.
Walker, N. (2011) ‘The Edge of Writing: John Stezaker’s ‘Cinema 1 II’’, In: Activate e-Journal Vol 1 Issue 1 2011 ‘On the Paper Floor: Exploring Writing Practices’. London, Roehampton University.
Walker & Stannage ‘A Mountain Communion’, Artists Pages In Performance Research 13:3, 2009, ‘On Congregation’, London, Routledge. 2009
Curation
Between 2009 and 2019 Nathan co-founded and curated the arts organisation Oui Performance with artist Victoria Gray. Together they presented a series of performance art events in York, North Yorkshire programming over 50 artists to produce new performance works, curated artists included John Court, Didier Morelli, Sandra Johnston, Alastair MacLennan, Roy Claire Potter, Lee Hassall, Denys Blacker, Karen Mac Cormack, Anne Seagrave, Poppy Jackson & Steve McCaffery.
2013 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2012 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2010 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2009 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2019 PhD University of Salford, Manchester, UK - Thesis: 'Action Poetry: The Vocal-Body in Performance Art'
2013 Recognised Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
2008 MA in Performance Writing, Dartington College of Art, Devon, UK
Teaching & Workshops
2018 - Current - Senior Lecturer in Fine Art (Course Lead) & Photography at York St John University
2010 - 2018 Lecturer in Performance at York St John University
2014 Site, Writing, Noise, Three-Day Taught Workshop for Level 1 & 2 Students, with Roy Claire Potter at L’ecole Beaux Arts Nantes, France
2014 Action / Object, Two-Day Taught Workshop for Level 4 & 5 Students, with Roy Claire Potter, at L’ecole Beaux Arts Nantes, France
Peer-Reviewed Chapters & Journal Articles
Walker, N. (2023) ‘Writing Performances of the Vocal-Body’, Journal of Writing in Creative Practice 16:1, pp.67-84
Walker, N. (2023) ‘Some Queer Zines’, In The Zine Symposium Zine (2023) Edited by Charlene Clempson & Nathan Walker, York, UK.
Walker, N. (2017) ‘Action Score Generator’, Journal of Writing in Creative Practice 9: 3, 2017, pp. 295 – 297
Walker, N. (2017) ‘Write Knowing: On John Court’, In John Court: An Idea of Performance a Idea of Art (2017) Finland, Frame Contemporary Art.
Walker, N. (2016) Condensations, Uniformagazine Issue 7, ISSN: 2056-6301
Walker, N. & Gray, V. (2015) Oui Performance: Performance Art in the City of York. In Carmichael, Y. & Crouch, A. (2015) 'Unruly Utterances: Participation, Criticality and Compass Festival 2014', Live Art UK & Compass Live Art. pp. 31 - 33.
Walker, N. (2014). 'Permutation and randomness in the Action Score Generator’, Journal of Writing in Creative Practice 7: 1, 2014, pp. 213–221.
Reason, Dorey-Richmond, Gray & Walker (2014). ‘Making Performance within the Institution: Documentation, Reflection and Production’, in Hidden Archives ed. Glen McGillivray. Amsterdam: Peter Lang. pp 149-171.
Walker, N. (2013). ‘Transitional Materialities and the Performance of JavaScript’, Performance Research Volume 18 (5), 2013, ‘On Writing & Digital Media’ London, Routledge.
Walker, N. (2011) ‘The Edge of Writing: John Stezaker’s ‘Cinema 1 II’’, In: Activate e-Journal Vol 1 Issue 1 2011 ‘On the Paper Floor: Exploring Writing Practices’. London, Roehampton University.
Walker & Stannage ‘A Mountain Communion’, Artists Pages In Performance Research 13:3, 2009, ‘On Congregation’, London, Routledge. 2009
Between 2009 and 2019 Nathan co-founded and curated the arts organisation Oui Performance with artist Victoria Gray. Together they presented a series of performance art events in York, North Yorkshire programming over 50 artists to produce new performance works, curated artists included John Court, Didier Morelli, Sandra Johnston, Alastair MacLennan, Roy Claire Potter, Lee Hassall, Denys Blacker, Karen Mac Cormack, Anne Seagrave, Poppy Jackson & Steve McCaffery.
2013 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2012 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2010 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts
2009 Arts Council England, Grants for the Arts