James Steventon is an artist based in Corby, Northamptonshire. He is currently Education Officer for Fermynwoods Contemporary Art and lectures at London Metropolitan University.
James's practice centres on the relationship between endurance running and endurance drawing. His durational performances involve the documentation of bodily exhaustion through the production of continuous marks drawn over extended periods of time.
As well as durational drawing, James also uses his running practice to produce work, combining the documentation of exhaustion with the marks made by his feet whilst running. Many of his running performances take place on football pitches, inspired by their history as common land and central social hubs to working class communities, whilst also drawing on his own history as a footballer in a semi-professional career which was cut short due to a serious knee injury.
In 2013, James completed a major performance, 'A Song for Eurydice'. For this performance he ran the length of the Grand Union canal from London to Birmingham, as part of which he ran continuously through the Blisworth Tunnel, being guided through the tunnel by a soprano operatically singing the 'Che faro senza Eurydice' aria from Gluck's 'Orfeo ed Euridice'. This tunnel section of the running performance was recorded, and can be listened to below:
For more information about James's practice, visit his website: www.jamessteventon.co.uk