Jim Clayburgh
# Jim Clayburgh

Jim Clayburgh (born 23 May 1949) is a scenic designer. He was a founding member of The Wooster Group and served as the group's resident designer from 1975 to 1994. He currently lives in Brussels, Belgium, where he founded the company JOJI INC with choreographer and dancer Johanne Saunier [fr], and continues to design for theatre, film, dance and opera both in the USA and in Europe.

## Life and career

Jim Clayburgh is the brother of actress Jill Clayburgh (1944–2010). With partner Johanne Saunier, he has two sons.

Clayburgh holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Claremont McKenna College, majoring in design at Pomona College, and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Design from New York University School Of The Arts. In the USA he has taught masterclasses at MIT, New York Tisch School of the Arts, University of California Santa Cruz, University of Michigan, Hollins University, Simons Rock College of Art. In Europe, he has taught at St Luc's Ecole Supérieur des Arts and the International School of Brussels.

He was part of the design team for the interior renovations of two major concert halls in Brussels: La Maison de la Radio at Flagey, Ixelles, and Le Palais des Beaux Arts.

In 2011 he gave a keynote address at the 41st International Theatre Festival at the Venice Biennale.

In 2013-14 he was a Visiting Artist at the American Academy of Rome.

Clayburgh was a member of the jury and gave a design workshop at Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space in 2019, and he was a key speaker at the 2015 edition.

In 2020, he collaborated with German soprano Sarah Maria Sun on texts for concerts and lyrics for songs.

## Approaches to scenic design

In conversation with Matthew Maguire:

"It interests me as a designer: looking for subconscious memories of space."

"The distraction of a twenty-minute light change in a concert setting seems to block the ability to listen for some. I find it a form of relaxation, a second track of active involved meditation. I'm surprised how few people shut their eyes when listening."

## Awards and articles

### Awards

OBIE award for Sustained Achievement (The Wooster Group) (1991).

OBIE award for Sustained Achievement In Design (1982).

### Articles

"A Space For Oedipus" – profile in Theatre Design & Technology, by Arnold Aronson (1978).

"Plywood and electronics" – profile in Theatre Crafts, by Tish Dace (1984).

## Design work

### The Performance Group (1973–1978)

| Production | Year | Director | Role |
| - | - | - | - |
| The Tooth of Crime | 1973 | Richard Schechner | Lighting design |
| The Tooth of Crime | 1974 | Richard Schechner | Set and lighting design |
| A Wing and a Prayer | 1975 | Ellen LeCompte | Lighting design |
| Thirty Years War | 1975 | Richard Schechner | Set and lighting design |
| Mother Courage and Her Children | 1975 | Richard Schechner | Set and lighting design |
| The Marilyn Project | 1976 | Richard Schechner | Set and lighting design |
| Oedipus | 1977 | Richard Schechner | Set and lighting design |
| Cops | 1978 | Richard Schechner | Set and lighting design |

### The Wooster Group (1975–1994)

| Production | Year(s) | Role |
| - | - | - |
| Sakonnet Point | 1975 | Set co-design, lighting design |
| Nayatt School | 1978 | Lighting design |
| Rumstick Road | 1979 | Set co-design |
| Point Judith | 1980 | Set co-design, lighting design |
| 3 Places in Rhode Island | 1981 | Set co-design, lighting design |
| Hula: a record album interpretation | 1981 | Lighting design |
| Routes 1&9 | 1981–85 | Set co-design, lighting design |
| North Atlantic | 1984–1986 | Set and lighting design |
| L.S.D. (...Just the High Points...) | 1986–1990 | Set and lighting design |
| Frank Dell's The Temptation of St Anthony | 1988–1990 | Set design |
| BRACE UP! | 1990–1994 | Set design |
| Fish Story | 1992–1996 | Set design |
| White Homeland Commando (film) | 1993 | Art direction |
| Emperor Jones | 1993–1996 | Set design |
| The Hairy Ape | 1994 | Set design |

### Scenic design (other)

| Production | Year | Director | Producer |
| - | - | - | - |
| Marie and Bruce | 1979 | Wilford Leach | NY Shakespeare Festival |
| Mary Stewart | 1981 | Des McAnuff | The Public Theatre |
| My Sister In This House | 1981 | Iverna Lockpez | Second Stage |
| The Confessions of a Dopefiend | 1982 | Matthew Maguire | Creation Company |
| Necessary Ends | 1983 | Jim Milton | NY Shakespeare Festival |
| Something Different | 1983 | Michael Kahn | Second Stage |
| Miss Universal Happiness | 1985 | Richard Foreman | Ontological-Hysteric Theatre |
| North Atlantic (remix) | 2001 | Elizabeth LeCompte | The Wooster Group |
| BRACE UP! (2003) | 2003 | Elizabeth LeCompte | The Wooster Group |
| In The Wind Of Time | 2005 | Isabella Soupart | Kunstenfestival des arts |
| KOD | 2007 | Isabella Soupart | Kunstenfestival des arts |

### Lighting design (dance)

| Production | Year | Director/Choreographer | Producer |
| - | - | - | - |
| Erts | 1993 | Anne-Terese de Keersmaeker | Rosas |
| Philoctetes Variations | 1994 | Jan Ritsema | Kaaitheater |
| Solo | 1995 | Michèle Anne de Mey | Company M.A. de Mey |
| Cahiers | 1996 | Michèle Anne de Mey | Company M.A. de Mey |
| De l'air et du vent | 1996 | Pierre Droulers | Company P. Droulers |
| Petites formes | 1997 | Pierre Droulers | Company P. Droulers |
| Katamenia | 1997 | Michèle Anne de Mey | Company M.A. de Mey |
| Sans les voix des maîtres | 1997 | Johanne Saunier | JOJI INC |
| Charms | 1997 | Judith Vindevogel | Walpurgis |
| Jewish Songs | 1997 | Douglas Becker | Conservatoire de Paris |
| Multum in Parvo | 1998 | Pierre Droulers | Company P. Droulers |
| Soon | 1998 | Hal Hartley | Salzburg Theatre Festival |
| The Day of Heaven and Hell | 1998 | Wim Vandekeybus | Royal Flemish Theatre |
| Choree | 2000 | Renaud de Putters | Bureau des pianos |
| Ma | 2000 | Pierre Droulers | Company P. Droulers |
| Mo-ten-tion | 2001 | Istok Kovacs | En Knap |
| Rappresentazione di Anima et di Corpo | 2002 | Pierre Droulers | La Monnaie |
| Apparitions | 2003 | Renard de Putters | Bureau des pianos |
| Each To His Own | 2003 | Douglas Becker | Ballet de Genève |
| Inoui | 2004 | Pierre Droulers | Company P. Droulers |

### Scenic and lighting design (1989–present)

| Production | Year | Director / Choreographer | Producer | Role | Notes |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Visions of Don Juan | 1987 | Matthew Maguire | Pepsico Summerfare Festival | Set and lighting design | NYC |
| Nightcoil | 1989 | Matthew Maguire | Creation Company | | NYC |
| Goose and Tom-Tom | 1986–90 | David Rabe | NY Shakespeare Festival | | NYC |
| Seventy Scenes of Halloween | 1992 | Matthew Maguire | Creation Company | | NYC |
| An Evening of Music and Video | 1994 | Kit Fitzgerald | On The Boards | | Seattle |
| Adventures | 1999 | P. Droulers / J. Clayburgh | La Monnaie | | Brussels |
| Final Scene | 2000 | JOJI INC | JOJI INC | Direction, set and lighting design | Brussels |
| Landscape with four figures | 2001 | Johanne Saunier | JOJI INC | | |
| It's Like | 2002 | Johanne Saunier | JOJI INC | | |
| Cara Lucia | 2003/2007 | Sharon Fogarty | Mabou Mines | | NYC |
| It's Like (installation) | 2004 | Johanne Saunier | JOJI INC | | |
| Erase-E(x) parts 1–6 | 2004–2007 | The Wooster Group, Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, Isabella Soupart, Kurt D’Haeseleer, Georges Aperghis, Johanne Saunier | JOJI INC | | Various |
| In The Wind Of Time | 2005 | Isabella Soupart | Kunstenfestival des arts | Set design | Brussels |
| Mozart Choreographies | 2007 | Salva Sanchez et al. | Mozarteum | | Saltzburg |
| Im-Agined | 2007 | Jim Clayburgh | JOJI INC/STRP Festival Eindhoven | Direction, set and lighting design | Eindhoven |
| Lolita, an imagined opera | 2008 | Jim Clayburgh | GMEM | Direction, set and lighting design | Marseille |
| Walking On Rocks | 2008 | Jim Clayburgh | JOJI INC/Scène Nationale de Cavaillon | Direction, set and lighting design | |
| Line Of Oblivion | 2010 | Jim Clayburgh | JOJI INC | Direction, set and lighting design | |
| Collision(s) | 2010 | Isabella Soupart | MadeInBruxelles | Set and lighting design | Brussels |
| Lear, A King | 2010 | François Sarhan | CNN de Havre Haute Normandie / SN Chalon-sur-Saône | Set and lighting design | Rouen / Chalon-sur-Saône |
| Musée en chantier | 2011 | JOJI INC | Théâtre des tanneurs | Set and lighting design | Brussels |
| Modern Dance | 2012 | JOJI INC | SN Chalon-sur-Saône | Set and lighting design | Chalon-sur-Saône |
| Man of La Mancha | 2012 | Sybille Wilson | Festival de Wallonie | Set and lighting design | Brussels |
| Le Maître des illusions | 2012 | Sybille Wilson | Théâtre du parc | Set and lighting design | Brussels |
| Words | 2012 | Isabella Soupart | H&B Films | Set and lighting design | (film) |
| SpiderNight | 2014 | EU Dance Project | Dans Centrum Jette | Lighting design | Brussels |
| I Love My Family I Don't Like | 2014 | Isabella Soupart | MadeInBruxelles | Lighting design | Brussels |
| Steve Reich Project | 2014 | Isabella Soupart | Beyond+Between asbl | Lighting design | Brussels |
| After Words | 2015 | Isabella Soupart | MadeInBruxelles | Lighting design | Brussels |
| La Digitale | 2015-2017 | Sybille Wilson | Musicatreize | Set and lighting design | Marseille, Paris, Bogotá |
| Tutti Colori | 2016 | Roxane Huilmand | Dans Centrum Jette | Lighting design | Brussels |
| Urban Bubbles | 2016 | JOJI INC | JOJI INC/Salzburg International Performing arts | Lighting design | Saltzburg |
| C'est ici que le jour se lève | 2016 | Isabella Soupart | Théâtre Publique | Lighting design | Brussels |
| How To Act | 2017 | Isabella Soupart | H&B Films | Lighting design | (film) |
| La Légende du Roi Dragon | 2018 | Johanne Saunier | Opéra de Lille / Opéra de Bordeaux | Set and lighting design | Lille, Bordeaux |
| Short Films | 2018 | Isabella Soupart | H&B Films | Lighting design | (film) |
| Faust 2.0 | 2019 | Sharon Fogarty | Mabou Mines | Set and lighting design | NYC |
| Carlotta's Room | 2019 | Arturo Fuentes | Festival Verticé UNAM | Lighting design and staging advice | Mexico City |
| Dans un train | 2020 | Eléonore Lemaire | JOJI INC/Corps à son | Lighting design | Toulouse, Varron |
