Somerset House Podcast

Somerset House Studios artists Jemma Desai and John Costi discuss how class intersects with the art world and why they decided to become artists.

The Process: Archive invites artists from our cultural programme and artist community to reflect on different works from the sonic archives and podcasts of Somerset House – from talks to soundscapes, performance to composition. In this episode, we deep dive into the transformative power of cute, exploring what happens when shrines and pop devotion intersect with the irresistible force of cuteness. Dot Alma is an artist from Greater Manchester, and is known for a touring shrine dedicated to George Michael, which is featured as part of the Holy Pop! Exhibition exploring how we idolise pop stars, cult icons, and even fictional characters have become a modern form of devotion. The former Wham! singer who died on Christmas Day in 2016. For Dot, this devotion deepened rather than faded after his death, taking on a spiritual quality that helps them explore identity and connection. Having navigated uncertain teenage years before finding peace with their identity in their twenties, Dot now lives a life of queer freedom and sees George Michael, revered by many as a queer folk-saint figure, as a model of positive queer masculinity. Dot shares what excites them about the world-building potential of pop culture, as we revisit the 2024 Process episode, Felt Cute, Might Shapeshift Later, with artist and musician Hannah Diamond. Contributors: Dot Alma; Hannah Diamond Executive Producer: Eleanor Ritter-Scott Producer: Tess Davidson Host: Laurent John Theme Music: Ka Baird Additional Sound: Dot Alma

From alternative modes of listening to live performance as a form of time travel, the Black political economy of music and the platform conditions of distribution, musician, curator and theorist, DeForrest Brown Jr. wants to discover new ways of relating to audio. In a world of noise and an oversaturated music industry, what new worlds might we discover if we reimagine how we make and listen to music? In this sonic essay for The Process, DeForrest reveals some of the ideas generated from his one-month residency at Somerset House Studios in 2025. Drawing on his research project, Rhythmanalytics, where he explores electronic music at the end of the music industry, DeForrest gives insight into his multi-media project, Synoptic Audio. In a richly textured dialogue between sound and words, DeForrest shares his experience of returning to Somerset House Studios to perform live as part of Assembly 2026 programme. Credits: Contributors: DeForrest Brown Jr Executive Producer: Eleanor Ritter-Scott Producer: Tess Davidson Sound Engineer: Mike Woolley Host: Laurent John Theme Music: Ka Baird Additional sound: DeForrest Brown Jr (live recording, Assembly, Somerset House Studios, 2026)

Artist Dana-Fiona Armour reveals what the sea snake knows about our changing oceans – and what it’s telling us about the climate emergency. It’s animals like the sea snake – a vital but often neglected bioindicator of marine health – that can be a crucial lens to environmental change. With fragile eco systems, rising sea temperatures and decreasing salinity, what would it take to retune our ears and listen to the sea snake? In her major courtyard commission for 2026, Serpentine Currents – Fragments of a Changing Future, Armour visualises how marine ecosystems are degrading and changing. The installation blends sculpture, science and responsive light technology, translating complex research and predictive ocean data from the British coast into visuals, with the sea snake at its heart. The dataset is also projected 50 years into the future, in a world where warming seas might allow sea snakes to inhabit UK waters. If the sea snake is telling us that the oceans are collapsing, with devastating consequences, then what does the future of our coastlines look like? Dana is joined by marine biologist, composer and researcher, Heather Spence, and researcher at French CNRS and Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris, Anthony Herrel. Credits: Contributors: Anthony Herrel and Heather Spence Executive Producer: Eleanor Ritter-Scott Producer: Tess Davidson Sound Engineer: Mike Woolley Host: Laurent John Theme Music: Ka Baird Additional field recordings and sound: Heather Spence, Felix Blume (FreeSound)

For the first in The Process Archive sub-series we revisit three works from Assembly, Somerset House Studios experimental sound and music series, with artists Elaine Mitchener, Beatrice Dillon, Jennifer Walshe and Memo Akten. Originating in 2018, Assembly emerged from the roots of sonic art and sound-based practice within the Studios resident artist community. To mark its fifth edition, we look back at some of the works that have defined it.