bio
Anastasia Rybina-James is a Russian-born British interdisciplinary artist, musician, and performer. Her work spans across sound, visual art and critical research.
In her artistic practice she explores themes related to
traditional russian folklore, archiving systems, naming systems, linguistics, how words do things (with words), machine intelligence, body-technology relations, psychology, exercises in creative thinking, permaculture
with the use of
still and moving image, performance, costume and sound
Anastasia received her Master’s in Project Management in 2010 in her hometown Moscow. Next couple of years she worked in an Illustration agency and studied film-making in Mosfilm studio (Costume design department) . After moving to the UK and completing her Arts Foundation she spent 4 years acquiring her Bachelors in Fine Art where she experimented with such mediums as printmaking, painting, sculpture, sound installation and performance.
Since starting her Arts Foundation in Falmouth she took a deep interest in voice and received teachings of Tibetan throat singing teacher Jill Purce. Anastasia also took vocal training in traditional Russian folk song with Nina Kolyada who became her long-term teacher and vocal-coach.
One of Anastasia’s lines of research lies in the territory of psychological anthropology. She takes special interest in research of transition and grieving practices and lamentation song.
As a flip side of her research she finds a great deal of interest in interactions with technology and new / diy / unusual / bespoke equipment and musical machines.
For her Bachelor Fine Arts dissertation she wrote about sound and performance practices. Enquiring about connections between body and technology within the work of an artist. Jill Purce’s spiritual teachings and Anastasia’s further research into voice gave her further understanding of the effects of sound to our psyche.
In the final year of Fine Art degree Anastasia joined JOMO Art Group - a “temporary micro-climate”, created by a group of like-minded artists - a space for slippages, leaks, collisions, breakages, harmonies and dissonances. The group’s weekly meetings produced a body of work, which rediscovered and redefinined culturally branded concepts such as boredom, laziness, failing, and the lack of will.
Since Anastasia arrival to UK 2012, she has been consistently involved in DJ-ing, playing as part of EEL Records collective, conducting DIY experiments in electronic music, as well as living and working closely with her husband and long-term collaborator Richard David James (aka Aphex Twin). Since 2018 she had numerous stage appearances as part of Aphex Twin crew with a modular synthesiser setup.
Anastasia leads drawing and performance workshops (for groups and individuals) as an integral part of her artistic practice and research.
Anastasia is currently working on her first EP which features modular-synthesiser experiments and voice.
Recent Shows & Exhibitions
2022
Retallack Barn. Mossy Dreaming Exhibition and Woodland Trail. Direction and sound design of Mossy Dreaming animated film.
2021
Sound design and video production for film LEPOTA. (Moscow, RU)
2019
Newlyn Gallery as part of JOMO Collective Residency (Newlyn, UK)
Spike Island Bristol as part of collaboration with Unn Devik (Bristol, UK)
2018
Tate St. Ives as part of Keiken Collective Residency (St. Ives, UK)
Newlyn Gallery as part of Keiken Collective Residency (Newlyn, UK)
Back Lane West Gallery as part of JOMO Collective Residency @ (Redruth, UK)
2017
Archive Gallery as part of The Pasty Connection Exhibition @ (London, UK)
Lamorva Basement Space Falmouth University as part of Performance Artists Unearthed festival @ (Falmouth, UK)
2016
Exchange Gallery Newlyn Telephone Exchange Basement Space (Penzance, UK)
Falmouth Polytechnic Museum as part of 2nd year Fine Art show. (Falmouth, UK)
2015
Falmouth Museum as part of intervention exhibition in collaboration with Porthmeor Studios (St.Ives / Falmouth, UK)
Falmouth Methodist Church as part of Arts Foundation Exhibition (Falmouth, UK)
Lectures and workshops
- Resident kids art workshops facilitator for Mossy Crow (Port Eliot Festival, “Community” with Russel Brand)
- Resident kids art teacher for London Gates School in (Moscow, St.Petersburg and Riga branches)“What is Drawing?” Intensive course for Bang Bang Education (Moscow, RUS)
- “Natural Dye for Fabric” Workshops @ Goosebarn Space (Helston, UK)
- “Lamentation as Performative Practice” Lecture @ Cafe Morte Research group meeting (Falmouth University, UK)
Performances
as maybelleene
2020
Fish Factory Art Gallery - online performance stream (UK)
Quaranstream on-line event - online performance stream (UK)
Deficit Club - Modular synth + voice (Moscow, RU)
Five degrees West Club - Modular synth + voice (UK)
As part of Aphex Twin crew
2019
Warehouse Project (Manchester, UK)
Printworks (London, UK)
Rock en Seine Festival (Paris, FR)
Coachella Festival (Palm Springs, US)
Avant Gardner (New York, US)
Ceremonia Festival (Toluca, México)
2018
BIME Festival (Bilbao, ES)
Club to Club Festival (Turin, IT)
Funkhaus (Berlin, DE)
2017
Penryn Space Agency Show (Penryn, UK)
Flow Festival (Helsinki, FIN)
Fuji Rock Festival (Fuji, Japan)