Robert Cervera: Pipework

Join artist Robert Cervera, members of Ikon Youth Programme and students from Royal Birmingham Conservatoire for a performance that explores breath, shared air, interdependence and negotiation. 

Using a sculptural musical instrument made from transparent plastic tubes, performers experiment with the aural possibilities of this object, guided by the artist.    

Robert Cervera, IYP and students perform on Slow Boat as it slowly moves along the canal. Audiences are invited to follow the boat’s journey via the towpath through Birmingham city centre.  

Meeting point: The Brindleyplace entrance to the ICC (International Convention Centre). Google Maps link.  

The walk begins at Brewmasters Bridge, close to Symphony Hall. The walk ends at Rotton Park Junction at Icknield Port Loop. The length of the walk is approximately 40 minutes.  

From the artist

“My work looks at the leaky ways of formless materials such as air, water and data.
​I’m interested in our efforts to contain them and herd them and turn them into reservoirs, music, breath or code.
I’m also keenly aware of how this shapeless stuff connects us, despite its invisibility. As a result, my work often foregrounds the infrastructure that holds such assets and points towards some of the materials used, be it concrete, metal armatures or liquid cooling pipes.
As for my output, I make sculptures, musical performances, videos and installations that talk to each other about flow, bodiliness and material interdependence.”

This event is supported by Freelands Foundation.

With the support of Freelands Foundation, over three years (2021-24) Ikon Youth Programme (IYP) navigates the waterways on board Slow Boat, a converted narrow boat. IYP are collaborating with creative thinkers and makers to reimagine Slow Boat as a local art school.