Brian Routh (9 March 1948 – 3 August 2018) was an English performance and sound artist.
He was known for his performance work with Martin von Haselberg as one of The Kipper Kids who became notorious for their rowdy and rebellious performances in the art world; influencing the punk movement and the inspiration for such acts as the Blue Man Group, Karen Finley and Paul McCarthy. In addition to performing in the United Kingdom, The Kipper Kids performed throughout Europe, North Africa, Canada and the United States. They also worked on a number of projects for HBO and Cinemax as well as cameos in various movies.
In addition to The Kipper Kids, Routh performed as a solo act and collaborated with other performers and artists. He produced sound art which consists of video performance and sound works that have been featured in museums, galleries, and on radio and television.
Life and family Born in Gateshead, County Durham, Routh grew up in a working-class family with parents that were considered rebellious talkers and storytellers. Routh's great-grandfather James Diston was a bare-knuckle prize fighter who also ran a circus.
Routh attended the Bifron's Secondary Modern School in Barking, Essex, graduating in 1963. In Routh's youth, he participated in boxing, poetry and singing. He learned to play the piano, harmonium, organ, and later the drums. Routh played in a rock group as a drummer in the early 1960s and later performed as a singer and guitarist.
He attended the East 15 Acting School in Loughton, Essex, where he met von Haselberg, a fellow student. They became good friends, and together they created The Kipper Kids. They performed in small theatres, clubs and festivals in Austria, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands. They received an invitation to perform as The Kipper Kids at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, which was marred by the Munich massacre.Ex Gateshead Schoolboy Goes to Olympic Games to Act, Gateshead Post, published 18 August 1972.
Routh was married to new media artist Nina Sobell from 1975 to 1981. Routh had taught in the United States at the San Francisco Art Institute in San Francisco, California, where he met Karen Finley. They were married in 1981, which ended in divorce in 1987. Since 2009, Routh was partnered with digital artist Patricia Wells and they were married in 2012. Artist Patricia Wells, retrieved 20 September 2011.Brian Routh Bio on vimeo. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
Routh lived in Leicester.On Edge: Performance at the End of the Twentieth Century; Carr, C.California Video: Artists and Histories; Los Angeles The Getty Research Institute, The J. Paul Getty Museum, edited by Glenn Phillips.
Performance artist Routh started his career in 1971 as a performance artist. After inventing the character of Harry Kipper with von Haselberg on an acid trip in Frankfurt, Germany, they developed The Kipper Kids.
Routh embarked on solo work primarily in the mid-1970s. Von Haselberg and Routh reunited in 1977 to appear as the Kipper Kids in a film by Richard Elfman called Forbidden Zone, which was released in 1982.Brian Routh (The Kipper Kids) appearance in the Forbidden Zone , retrieved 6 November 2011.
In 1980, Routh began to perform as a solo artist again in between Kipper Kids appearances. He performed at Lincoln Center in New York City, as well as theatre festivals in Germany and Italy, and at Art Cologne, an art fair in Cologne, Germany.
In 1982, The Kipper Kids were cast in a unique variety show promoted by HBO, entitled The Mondo Beyondo Show, featuring and hosted by actress and singer Bette Midler. Routh was also involved in writing and starring in three projects for Cinemax and HBO, and he performed in several films alongside von Haselberg as The Kipper Kids.Kipper Kids Seek a K.O. on Cinemax 31 July 1988, by Lawrence Christon, retrieved 28 September 2011.
Collaborations Routh collaborated with and appeared with: The Kipper Kids Blue Man Group Nina Sobell Karen Finley (a 1981 tour of Italy and Germany) Henry Rollins (in Arizona, 1987) Public Image Ltd Genesis P-Orridge Sex Pistols (at Reading University, 1975) Johanna Went (at the Theatre Carnival) Sequel Cafe LA USA Eric Bogosian Anne Bean Bow Gamelan Ensemble Lol Coxhill Evan Parker Derek Bailey Ian Hinchliffe
Filmography and television work Year Movie-Television Show 1991 The Addams Family Spirit of '76 1990 Mum's Magic Mulch 1989 Moonlighting 1988 UHF Mondo Beyondo K.O. Kippers 1981 Theatre in Trance – Rainer Werner Fassbinde No Holds Barre 1980 Forbidden Zone 1979 Dress Rehearsal-Werner Schroeter 1977 & 1978 Chuck Barris Rah-Rah Show
2000–2018 Routh worked primarily within the sound art genre on a variety of pieces combining video, performance and sound in the form of diaries, rants and sound works. He was also involved in activism and uses notable speakers, sampling their speeches and re-editing them to music he designed for the piece.Interview with Brian Routh, written 26 March 2011 Janestown.net. Retrieved 16 January 2012. His sound work has been featured on numerous BBC Radio shows and The Guardian weekly podcast.
See also
List of British artists List of English people List of performance artists List of sound artists
References
External links The Kipper Kids website