Challenging the notions of the biennale and art fair forms, we presented our International Festival, Bureau de Change and took the themes of Borderless and Play as our inspiration.
Our group decided to curate a cosy, homely room filled with familiar objects and games from our respective cultures.
hook-a-duck
With a firm nod to the traditional ‘Hook-a-Duck’ typically found at village fetes across the UK, I installed an inflatable children’s paddling pool in the centre of the room. Inside were ocean balls to mimic water and origami boats made from old encyclopedic map pages. A small child’s chair was positioned nearby and from there you could ‘fish’, like a garden gnome, using rods with magnets attached. By hooking a boat you could choose another country to freely travel to… in your mind at least.
between potential and kinetic
Also for Bureau de Change, I installed a light piece in the morgue space. A single torch suspended on a string, its beam just millimetres from the ground.
Set in motion, the torch illuminates the luminous paint on the floor. The path of the torch, a swinging pendulum, is revealed as the paint begins to glow. The image comes slowly in and out of view, intensifying as the torch changes its’ path to produce a glowing ellipse. As the pendulum slows, it’s centre appears darker and darker, revealing an apparent void.
Positioned in an old morgue, the bar and string give an uncomfortable air of a makeshift hanging or a potential suicide. Like instability, the bar holding the string is balanced, just wedged between the walls, slightly precariously. A sharp tug on the string would bring it crashing down.
Through motion and phosphorescence, this work references time and the speed of light. The swinging pendulum highlights wonder as it amplifies pattern and rhythm to reveal hidden geometric pathways, this extends my work in mapping residues and utilising reactive materials and introduces a reference to childhood with spirograph type patterns being revealed.
The work is unpredictable despite the geometry. The piece is reliant on a spectator swinging the pendulum to start the motion. If one meditates on the hypnotic harmony, one might experience the appearance of a void like ellipse. However, in allowing the spectator to engage, inviting the visitor to play, chaos is introduced. The viewer can change the path of the light, they can disrupt – as an irritation, or with humour and amusement.