Benji Jeffrey

About

I am an artist, educator, musician and performer exploring the complexity of performing in the everyday while abandoning the distinction between high/low culture.  I am interesting in mining the gap between being and appearing through the manifestation and deconstruction of characters, primarily through video, sound and performance. I am a popstar, a composer, a conductor, a drag queen, a costume designer, a director, a graphic designer and a videographer. I can do anything, and so can you.

My pedagogy revolves around centring joy, enthusiasm and friendship within an art practice. These three elements, which are the tent poles of my own practice, are something I use as a proposal for ways of working which encourage building sustainable practices, attempting to eschew the harmful trope of the tortured artist.

As a great believer in the power of generosity I am a frequent collaborator with a deep awareness and care for my audience. I work across creative worlds, blending and questioning the distinctions set in place between them. When does art become music? Is capital the only distinguishing factor between amateur and professional? When does a performance stop and ‘real' life begin?

I am a queer creative from a working class background in Halifax, Yorkshire. While these identifiers don't necessarily manifest clearly within my practice, they certainly influence it.