Electro Studios: Non-conforming universe
Sexton Ming and Jason Williams’ show this December is at Electro Studios in Seaside Rd, St Leonards.
Sexton and Jason have been at the vanguard of the Outsider Art and experimental music movement for over 30 years. This show is a celebration of their incredible body of work, including the hyper-prolific Sexton Ming’s Porridge Van music project. There’ll be a series of events over the first weekend in December, from the opening private view to live performances, a sound installation and – perhaps most excitingly – a puppet show.
Sexton Ming has been writing, drawing, painting, recording, and performing for decades, as a solo performer, as a founder member of The Medway Poets and in The Tasty Ones trio. He has collaborated with Billy Childish, Adrian Stout of The Tiger Lillies, Project Dark, Black Arches and Leigh Bowery’s Minty. Ming’s solo albums include Ban the Mindreader and Birds With Teeth, while his collaborations with Billy Childish include The Cheeky Cheese and Here Comes The Fleece Geese.
Jason Williams is untrained and uncompromising, having performed with a non-careerist attitude, for over thirty years. He was a central figure in the noise explosion of the early nineties, being at one and the same time a catalyst for chaos and a reclusive introvert. His collaborations have included collages and oil paintings with contemporary German artist Albert Oehlen for an ‘I will always champion bad painting’ exhibition and as ‘Silver-head’ with godfather of graffiti Jeff Keen. He was once described by fellow artist Jeffrey Louis-reed as ‘a one-man avantgarde steamroller’.
True outsider artists, Ming and Williams exemplify a lifetime commitment to art, experimental music and performance that invites and challenges in equal measure – what they describe as ‘proper schizo’. They come via the Stuckists (named after an original insult by Tracey Emin).
Sexton Ming’s Porridge Van have, since 2018, released upwards of one hundred albums, over eighty hours of music, mostly available free of charge. The project combines provocative or bizarre visuals with noise adjacent pop music to produce a challenging, immersive experience rooted in DIY traditions like punk, but always with a hefty dose of humour. Sexton and Jason have participated in Hastings and St Leonards on Sea’s experimental art and music festival SONICS since its inception as Three Sunday Sonics by artist/musician Danny Pockets in 2015. They have appeared variously as artists, musicians, performers and audience members (often in a sleeping bag).
SONICS Curator, James Weaver, says “Porridge Van’s fiercely independent ethics and provocative / hilarious performances are a perfect fit for the nature of art that Electro Studios Project Space supports.”
If you’re looking for a context, the nearest I can think of is a cross between Ivor Cutler and Viv Stanshall, with a touch of Peter and the Wolf narrated by David Bowie. Bonkers, but magic fun.
The Peculiar Art and Music of Sexton Ming and Jason Williams – a collaborative exhibition: Friday 5-Sunday 7 December 2025 Electro Studios, Seaside Rd, Saint Leonards-on-Sea TN38 0AL electrostudiosprojectspace.co.uk sonics-hastings.com Instagram: @sonics_hastings
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