The Suite (212) Sessions, no. 4 - Tai Shani

In the wake of the coronavirus epidemic and shutting down of much of the UK's cultural life, we have decided to bring you a series of interviews with contemporary artists, writers, filmmakers and other cultural figures, conducted via Skype (so apologies for the diminished audio quality), about their practices, the political issues that inspire them and the socio-economic conditions that have shaped their work. In the fourth of these Sessions, Juliet talks to artist and teacher Tai Shani, born in London to Israeli parents and now based in the city. They discuss the recent UCU strikes; Tai's route into art after a youth in Tel Aviv, Brussels and Goa, without formal art schooling; her installation and performance project DC: Semiralis, based on Christine de Pizan's Book of the City of Ladies (1405); her decision to share the Turner Prize in 2019 after that project was nominated; her relationship with the art world and the UK's mainstream media. A full list of references for the programme can be found via our Patreon at www.patreon.com/suite212, and are available to $3 subscribers.