The First Time With... Series 28 - 1. Cosey Fanni Tutti

THE FIRST TIME WITH... SERIES 28 - 1. COSEY FANNI TUTTI (320kbs-m4a/130mb/57mins)
BBC Radio 6 Music broadcast: 5th February 2023

Musician, author, and performance artist Cosey Fanni Tutti joins Matt to talk about her First Times, and performing with Throbbing Gristle and Chris & Cosey.

Born in Hull, Cosey began her art and music career during 1969, appearing in art performances and musical improvisations in and around Hull until 1972.

In 1973, Cosey moved to London and continued working as a performance artist, representing Britain at the 9th Paris Biennale, 1975 and Arte Inglese Oggi, 1976. She also performed in Belgium, Germany, Holland, France, Italy, Austria, USA and Canada until 1980.

Throughout the period 1973 - 1980 Cosey was exhibiting, contributing to mail art exhibitions and performing in other group exhibitions around the world. Often working naked in her performances, Cosey went on to investigate self-image within the context of sex magazines and sex films, glamour modelling and striptease acts. Her experiences within these industries during the period 1973 - 1984 were brought into her art work as she explored the many aspects of sex as it is perceived and transacted as commercial product. She placed conventional beauty in a situation where it was subjected to simulated mutilation before a live audience. This provided a visual contrast highlighting and questioning the notion of what is presentable as 'beauty'.

In her infamous exhibition 'Prostitution' at the Institute of Contemporary Art, London, 1976, Cosey Fanni Tutti occupied multiple roles; artist, model, musician, and herself. Music was used in some of Cosey's performances in preference to spoken language, which she considered an obstacle to her visual presentations. She continued to explore the use of sound, scientifically, politically, commercially and as a means of physical pleasure or pain. In 1976, she co-founded the group Throbbing Gristle with Chris Carter, Peter Christopherson and Genesis P-Orridge. They broke the rules of established music and its contextual business practice, ultimately becoming successful with their own record label, Industrial Records. In 1981, Cosey immersed herself in creating music and video with partner Chris Carter under the name Chris & Cosey, most recently performing and recording as Carter Tutti. Their joint musical and video collaborations, some 32 albums, have met with continuing international success.

1994 marked Cosey's re-entry into the art world, since which time her works have been widely exhibited in Museums and Galleries in the UK, USA, Italy, Austria, Germany, Lisbon, Japan, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and Sweden. Cosey's continuing multidisciplinary approach to her work has generated many audio and visual works contributing to a prolific output in the past 15 years alongside her guest lectures, discussion panel appearances and numerous presentations.

In 2000, after studying for five years, Cosey received a Bachelor of Arts, First-Class Honours Degree that was conferred at Ely Cathedral in Cambridgeshire, England.

Her approach to her work also inspired the one-day event in March 2010 'COSEY COMPLEX' at the ICA, London in which a range of artists, writers and other practitioners were invited to present works inspired by the notion of 'Cosey as Methodology', culminating in a music event 'COSEY CLUB-ICA'.

In 2009 - 2010, Cosey's work was part of the travelling exhibition 'Pop Life: Art in a Material World' at Tate Modern, London. Also in 2010, Cosey performed a solo audio visual piece in the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern as part of the Tate Modern 10th birthday celebrations.

Her art practice takes its place alongside her continuing music work with Chris Carter (as CARTER TUTTI) and the re-grouping of Throbbing Gristle and their continuing world-wide performances and recordings. Her work continues to be exhibited internationally, most recently in 'Pop Life' at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Canada and 'Picture Industry' at Regen Projects summer show in Los Angeles in 2010.

Throbbing Gristle - United [Mute]
Doris Day - How Much Is That Doggie In The Window [Barajazz]
Cream - Strange Brew [Polydor]
Julie Driscoll & Brian Auger & The Trinity - This Wheel's On Fire [Premier]
Throbbing Gristle - Hot On The Heels Of Love [Mute]
Donna Summer - I Feel Love [Casablanca]
Chris & Cosey - Secret [Conspiracy International]
The BBC Radiophonic Workshop - Blue Veils And Golden Sands [Rephlex]
Cosey Fanni Tutti - Tutti [Conspiracy International]