Vic Reeves to look at conceptual art for BBC Four
- Vic Reeves is to present a BBC Four documentary series called Gaga For Dada
- Due to broadcast this autumn, it sees the comedian looking at the world of conceptualist art
- Armando Iannucci, Terry Gilliam and Arthur Smith are amongst those appearing in the show
Vic Reeves is to front a BBC Four documentary looking at Dada conceptualist art.
Gaga For Dada: The Original Art Rebels, which he will present under his real name, Jim Moir, focuses on the avant-garde art movement.
The documentary - which is part of the forthcoming BBC Four Goes Conceptual season - has been commissioned to mark the 100th anniversary of Dada.
The BBC says: "Jim Moir, aka Vic Reeves, takes us on an irreverent trip into the world of absurd, provocative, subversive - Dada was born as a response to the madness of WWI, but its radical way of looking at the world went on to transform modern culture, influencing comedy, art, fashion, political protest and popular music. From Monty Python to punk, Bowie to Banksy, the long shadow of Dada's cultural revolution is hard to miss.
"Jim Moir first encountered Dada as a student at art school and his alter ego Vic Reeves has often been compared to Dada cabaret. In this film, Jim explores those connections by re-staging an early Dada performance in Zurich's Cabaret Voltaire where the movement first began, recreating lost artworks and devising some new ones in an entertaining and eccentric approach to re-telling the Dada story."
Comedy producer Armando Iannucci, Monty Python star Terry Gilliam and stand-up comedian Arthur Smith are amongst those who will be appearing in the hour-long documentary to explore how Dada shaped so much of 20th century culture.
Vic Reeves says: "I first came across Dada at art school in the early 80s. It was funnier and more anarchic than anything else I discovered. And it didn't always have to make sense! Out of all the isms, movements and manifestos of the twentieth century, it was the DADA-ists who proved the most important - giving birth, not only to a lot of modern art, but also shaping comedy, music and political protest..."
BBC Four Goes Conceptual - which also will feature new documentaries titled Who's Afraid Of Conceptual Art? and The R&B Feeling: The Bob Parks Story - will be on TV this autumn.
BBC Four's Cassian Harrison says: "Bold, baffling, witty and adventurous - there's a lot that BBC Four and Conceptual Art could be said to have in common - so I'm delighted to celebrate this most uncompromising of art movements with a major season on BBC Four. With a series of films from a cast of brilliant talents, be prepared to have your brain bent, stretched and strummed as BBC Four Goes Conceptual this autumn."