VANCOUVER BIENNALE – RESIDENCY
Talking Circle, 2015. Sound installation.
I recently participated in a 6 week artist in residence program with the Vancouver Biennale, during which time I created two related public artworks, which are still on display in Downtown Squamish, BC.
This Beautiful Day is a 26-ft solar-powered neon artwork, with a backdrop of the iconic Stawamus Chief in Squamish, BC, Canada. The text-based artwork references Canadian First Nations’ respect of the natural environment.
Talking circle is a sound installation consisting of 10 speakers, arranged in a circle, installed within a thousand year old forest in Paradise Valley, British Columbia. The work consists of field recordings from the surrounding area, composed and interwoven with translations of the phrase ‘This Beautiful Day’ into the Squamish language, ‘Halth skwile, te-staas!’. Click here to hear a preview of the Talking Circle sound piece.
The two companion works reference the First Nations’ acknowledgement of their environment while highlighting endangered indigenous languages.
Read more about the project here.
‘TURNING POINT’ ARTWORK COMMISSION
Turning Point, 2015 (Photograph courtesy of TerraCRG)
I recently completed an artwork commission for TerraCRG commercial realty group, for their fabulous new office space in Brooklyn designed by Ole Sondresen Architects.
In the manner of Concrete Poetry, Turning Point is self-referential, using text as sculptural form and referring to itself through its own action; the turning of each letter across the grid format until the word is transformed from a vertical to horizontal reading.
Turning Point appropriates the language of consumer culture and advertising, and in doing so the neon sign refers to itself. Placed within the context of a property developer, the word TRANSFORM also relates to the transformation of Brooklyn and other neighborhoods around the world undergoing rapid change.
Check out some photos of the launch party on Facebook.
THE SELFIE PROJECT
In March-May 2015 I worked with the not-for-profit arts organisation Residency Unlimited, Special Projects Curator Ayelet Aldouby, and the amazing students and staff at Charles O. Dewey Middle School (MS 136) in Brooklyn, to develop The Selfie Project.
The Selfie Project is an artistic educational workshop that combines nature, data and recycled materials. It translates students’ face recognition data (generated by computers to identify faces in digital photographs), into a combined abstract portrait, represented as a vertical garden.
During the workshop, students learned about privacy and social media, and gained an understanding of artistic, technological, botanical, environmental and mathematical concepts through the translation of data into a colorful, living mural.
Click here for more information about this project.
ROYALE PROJECTS LAUNCHES IN DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES
My representative gallery in the USA, Royale Projects : Contemporary Art has just announced the launch of their incredible new 6500ft space in the emerging art hot-spot of Downtown LA. I am looking forward to working with the fantastic team at their new space! Opening the weekend of September 19-20, 2015. I’m super excited about it, and so is the LA Times.
Click here to read the media release.
