At the end of January, the Lancaster Rooms in Somerset House’s New Wing will be transformed into a replica of the unpretentious cafe artist John Costi’s father runs on the North Circular Road, or A406. Costi Corner is part of Bapou’s Bubbles, an installation – that has now sold out – inspired by the artist’s Cypriot-Irish roots that will also incorporate a live talk show. (Bapou means “grandfather” in Greek, while “Bubble” is Cockney slang for Greek.)
The London-born multimedia artist has conceived the talk show as an interactive launch pad for discussions on institutional harm and toxic masculinity, and he’ll speak with guests including childcare specialist and “London’s super manny” Joss Cambridge-Simmons, Unicef UK vice president Michael Hastings, and Sarah Matheve from Koestler Arts, which supports arts education for individuals in the criminal justice system. Artists Gary Mansfield (a Koestler Arts board member), Eve Stainton and Adam Farah-Saad will also join the conversations.
Replicating the no-holds-barred format of late-night television, the work will mix the conversations with urban music and absurdist theatre. Costi will act as host, presenting fractured versions of himself throughout. “At its heart, I’m simply telling my story, although Bapou’s Bubbles reaches beyond autobiography,” says Costi. “It’s a blueprint for others like me, from similar backgrounds, to interrogate the inherited beliefs and behaviours we’ve been taught to carry without question.”
The work will also function as a prison memoir. Costi spent time in jail following convictions for armed robberies he carried out around the Finchley area in 2006 and 2007. Following his release, Costi completed a BA course in Fine Art at Central Saint Martins art school and his 2013 multimedia degree show featured letters from inmates he had collected during his prison sentence. Over time, Costi has expanded his practice to include live and recorded performances, and his work routinely interrogates how societal factors and background can lead to criminal behaviour.
“Bapou’s Bubbles speaks especially to those who’ve been to prison, or who’ve been shaped by violent and suffocating ideas of masculinity,” Costi continues. “For many of us, our identities are reduced to our worst moments – we become walking criminal records and little else. This work pushes back against that, asking how we reclaim purpose and refuse to let our pasts dictate our present and future.”
Costi is passionate about the redemptive nature of art and how it helped him find paths to a new life. “Through making art and being really honest, I transformed myself into something useful,” he says. “Bapou’s Bubbles is my way of sharing these soul-searching tools, in the hope that others might use them. And, in time, become something new and helpful themselves.”
Bapou’s Bubble discussions will also take in criminal justice reform, mental health and queer identity. “I see the work as an educational resource of sorts, particularly for emotionally illiterate men,” says Costi. “It’s an invitation to feel and recognise that internal conflict isn’t a weakness, but something that can be healthy and generative. If we slow down, breathe, and listen to the many facets of ourselves that crowd the mind, we can choose the voice that serves us best.”
Costi’s approach is participatory, and visitors will be encouraged to get involved as the discussions develop. But, while the artwork’s subject matter is serious and topical, Bapou’s Bubbles will also be about fun. “It’s all somewhat messy, unresolved and very intentional,” Costi says. “I think that’s what an honest inner life looks like.”
Bapou’s Bubbles is at Somerset House on January 30 and 31. Tickets have now sold out.
