Trading Place
As the name suggests Trading Place is an interactive Art installation that
trades objects and artworks from one ‘place’ for another ‘place’.
The audience is invited to trade an object that signifies their connection
to the place they live in return for an artwork or object
from the Trading Place collection.
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There will be a series of artworks offered for exchange and these will be original artworks executed by both of us which will reflect our connection to place. Having a strong background in ceramics most of the artworks will be made from this medium, with some mixed media specimens also added. Our ceramic practice has seen us venture out into the field to take samples and impressions of place ‘in situ’ which we then turned into artworks back in the studio. Taking an imprint of an object captures it in time which then has the outcome of displaying two histories, one of preserving the original and the other of the artwork. These pieces are strong representations and intended to invoke a ‘spirit of place’.
Invited to Port Augusta for an Artist’s residency we considered this to be the ideal launching pad for this innovative new collaboration project. The project's next stop will be Lismore Regional Gallery in September/October 2015, and then ongoing from there... In Trading Place the participants are asked to bring along their own miniature artwork or object (not exceeding approx. 110mm x 150mm x 110mm - think postcard size) that is important or significant to them and reflects/signifies their connection to place, along with a brief explanation as to what the piece is about or its significance to them, in which to trade with us. We, as the hosting artists, will then decide on the trades and which ones are successful or rejected. This will be an ongoing project with future exhibitions already planned in which to ’trade’ the objects exchanged in the previous installation. In the past there was a thriving barter economy among travellers with gift exchange being very popular, Trading Place aims to capture the spirit of these exchanges between artists by playing on the nomadic nature of contemporary art practice. Trading Place is thoughtful – about our environment, the way we live and the impact we have on it. It questions the values we place on objects and highlights our connection to place all at the same time. A percentage of the traded artworks will then be offered for exchange at the next destination, in 2015 it will be at Lismore Regional Gallery, and will be interspersed with fresh artworks provided by us. These new pieces will be a response to our time spent in the previous ‘place’ (in this case, Port Augusta). The remainder, the most significant pieces, will be retained to build the ‘Trading Place’ collection. Trading Place made its debut at Port Augusta Cultural Centre - Yarta Purtli in 2014 as part of the ARID Festival and our next stop will be Lismore Regional Gallery 12 September – 24 October 2015 . |
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