I’m super thrilled to share that my work SWIM has been Shortlisted for the Aesthetica Art Prize 2025! Thank you to @aestheticamag and the jury for considering the work, I’m very grateful🤎
SWIM will be part of the Aesthetica Art Prize Exhibition at York Art Gallery, running from 19 September 2025 to 25 January 2026!
Introducing @peter.spanjer screening “SWIM” at @turnercontemporary for Movements from the Margins on 30/8
Peter Spanjer returns to @diasporas_now with his new film “SWIM,” created during his @cobgallery@cob.award residency which premiered last month on @nowness . Identifying water and public space as recurring motifs specifically within black queer narratives, “SWIM” explores how intimacy escalates when the private and the public intertwine.
Presented by @peopledemcollective and @diasporas_now at @turnercontemporary , Movements from the Margins is a cross-diasporic celebration of art, music, dance, and community organising as collective spiritual practice 🌊
Booking link in bio
Photo by @showpickle
#Margate #GlobalMajority #TurnerLates #TurnerContemporary #EdClark #PeopleDemCollective #DiasporasNow
Last 2 days to see SWIM at @cobgallery , meaning the end of my @cob.award residency… couldn’t leave without saying a few words - thank you thank you thank you to every person that has helped shape this work in ANY way. I’m so so grateful.
Special s/o to the real MVP’s @mateo.cvb & @cuan_roc who jumped on board without any hesitation and created such a safe space for me and my ideas.
Thank you to the main boys @florencemfalana and @i.am.francesco for putting in the WERK in the shortest amount of time.
And thank you to @antoniastevenson_ for holding it DOWN and for being a shoulder/ear at all times and for your attention to every detail!
And of course thank you @cobgallery for making it happen!
🤎
SWIM, my exhibition will be opening tomorrow from 6-9pm at @cobgallery . Hopefully see you there! 🏊🏾♂️
THANK YOU to the crew but more later 🤎
Production Company - Foreign Body @foreignbodyproductions
Writer / Director - Peter Spanjer
Producer - Cuan Roche @cuan_roc
Producer - Mateo Villanueva Brandt @mateo.cvb
CAST
Kevin - Florence Falana - @florencemfalana
Julian - Francesco Lohore @i.am.francesco
Director of Photography - Stephen Ofori @essofori
Production Designer - Matty Mancey @matty.mancey
Editor - Mateo Villanueva Brandt @mateo.cvb
Sound - Louis Grace @louis_khz
1st Assistant Director - Molly Harper @mo.llyharper
1st Assistant Camera - Hugo Lai @hugoial
2nd Assistant Camera - Riley Dunmore @riley_dunmore Steadicam Operator - Jak Waughman @jaksteadi
Gaffer - Chanthila Phaphanit @chantss_p
Gaffer - Conrad Magan @conradmgn
Script Editor - Edd Carr - @_eddcarr_
Original Score - Johan Nilsson & Gabriel Von Essen @jhnnlssn@gabrielvonessen
Colour Grade - Sharon Cho Ki Chung - @ikohchung@cob.award
Opening next Thursday 30 May, 6-9pm!
SWIM is the title of Peter Spanjer’s site-specific exhibition representing the culmination of extensive research and development as the third recipient of the Cob Award. The exhibition features an installation of the narrative based moving image work produced by Peter Spanjer in collaboration with Foreign Body Productions. The screening of the film will take over the studio space in an immersive exhibition.
Drawing on his ongoing interest in hydrophilia in queer cinema and literature, this particular body of work explores the role that public space plays in black queer love stories whilst forming a visual language built up of references of archive queer imagery. As well as his continued exploration into video techniques Spanjer’s film SWIM focuses on the development of his approach to writing and building scripts; this being his first narrative based work. Illuminated by the works of Langston Hughes to Hilton Als to Rinaldo Walcott, Spanjer seeks to carve out his own way of storytelling through an investigation into the semantics of intimacy. The final presentation sees the artist take curatorial autonomy over the installation of the work in order to further the narrative focus.
31 May - 22 June
@peter.spanjer@cobgallery
