Russell Tovey Explores the Life of British Poet David Robilliard in a Documentary

Violet Goldstone
·3 min read
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LONDON — Russell Tovey has released a documentary on the life of British poet and contemporary artist, David Robilliard, titled “Life is Excellent.” Accompanying the film was a free exhibition, “We Move in Circles,” which was open until Nov. 25 in north London.

Both projects were created in partnership with WeTransfer’s arts platform WePresent — united by Tovey’s mission to educate the public about the impact of the AIDS crisis, highlighting lives which were cut short by the disease.

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“As an openly gay man, I’m part of a lucky generation. People from the unlucky generations before us did all this work and suffered with AIDS and have passed,” Tovey said in an interview.

“I feel like I have a responsibility now to tell their stories. It’s a privilege to be able to be a conduit for these heroes that changed the world,” he added.

Robilliard was famed for fusing his two passions into one, creating artworks that featured images and text; colorful line drawings of friends, family, and strangers alike were complemented by fragmented words scrawled across the canvas.

After being diagnosed with AIDS in the ’80s, Robilliard died from the disease in 1988 at age 36, something that hit home for Tovey.

A still from the "Life is Excellent" documentary.
A still from the “Life is Excellent” documentary.

“When I was 36, I discovered his work, and that terrified and fascinated me in equal measures,” the actor said.

The exhibition, which displayed HIV and AIDS activism t-shirts which were curated in partnership with Past magazine, carried an equally personal meaning for him.

Tovey reminisced on seeing Act Up’s “Silence = Death” campaign t-shirts, which shaped his adolescence and encouraged him to become comfortable with his identity. The t-shirts were on display at the exhibition.

“The pink triangle was worn in the Holocaust by homosexuals that then became inverted. A symbol of oppression became a symbol of reclamation,” he said.

T-shirts from Keith Haring, Dallas’ G.U.T.S. and Manchester’s Never Going Underground were showcased throughout the exhibition, each exploring how clothing can serve as a powerful form of protest.

“They’re artifacts, they’re historical documents, they’re human history and I want them to be elevated  and these stories to be known,” Tovey said.

A "Silence = Death" campaign t-shirt on display.
A “Silence = Death” campaign t-shirt on display.

The exhibition space is home to a library of queer literature curated by Gay’s The Word, the oldest LGBT bookshop in the U.K.

“There’ve been so many queer artists that never had the opportunity to have that success in their lifetime. I want to fill in the gaps and make sure that there is a legacy — that there are gay queer stories told in art,” Tovey said.

The projects are a part of Tovey’s year-long guest curatorship, during which he curated a series of essays and live performances inspired by actor and filmmaker Derek Jarman’s 1993 film “Blue.”

“Through this year-long guest curatorship we wanted to focus on some of the great talents and minds that we lost to the AIDS crisis, many of whom are Russell’s heroes,” said Holly Fraser, WeTransfer’s editor-in-chief.

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