The Arabic text closest to the entrance to the first gallery of the Ko rātou, ko tātou | On other-ness, on us-ness exhibition (See details here or go to the blog introducing this exhibition) that was on show at NorthArt, Auckland, reads as “first house” (avvala baytin). Below this was the sentence from the Qur’an:
“Indeed, the first House [of worship] established for humanity was that at Makkah [Bakka] – blessed and a guidance for the worlds.”
The Qur’an, 3:96

Left to Right: Wave (detail), custom-made water tank by Jeff Thomson (link to a discussion of this work); Arabic text above reads: “first house (avvala baytin)”; Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level (2018) by Ursula Christel. Courtesy the artist and Mokopōpaki Acrylic, gesso, printed perspex, metal lugs, graphite, sealant on board (99 x 61cm), plastic spirit level (6 x 61cm);
Gavin Chilcott Pilgrimage to Mecca, 50 x 70 cm. Framed pastel on paper. Courtesy: John Perry.

Ever since the 1980s, when I first started reading about Islam, coming from a Roman Catholic background myself, I was struck by the concept of the qibla because while Rome is important, Catholics around the world, do not face a specific location while in prayer. The significance of this as I viewed it was that the Prophet Muhammad had envisioned a worldwide religion – of all cultures around the world facing the same location, as a daily sign of a shared global focus. Then while engaged in research for this exhibition I discovered that the text from the Qur’an refers to a change of direction, because previously the Prophet’s followers had faced Jerusalem when they prayed which was also the Jewish custom, and now they were to face Mecca (also known as Bakka or Bekka, the name of the area, or Makkah. See 2:144 which speaks of changing the qibla to Mecca).

For me as a Bahai, this brought in the concept of progressive revelation, the idea that all religions are the same religion (with the same God), and the variations are in relation to culture and history. So I saw the change as indicative of the evolution of Islam, even during the time of the Prophet Muhammad. It also explained for me why The Dome of the Rock built in Jerusalem in 691–92 at the order of Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik could have been built, although there is no clear record of its initial purpose. At the time, Jerusalem was a holy city for Jews and Christians. This building rivalled the Christian buildings, transforming the best aspects of current Byzantine architecture into a new form. The 1022-23 rebuilt Dome of the Rock has texts on the walls referring to Islamic teachings about Jesus. Today it is one of the oldest extant works of Islamic architecture, protects the rock believed to bear the imprint of the Prophet Muhammad’s foot, and is an icon and influence on Islamic architecture.

Foreground: New Space / Takawaenga, 2020, by Ursula Christel.
Left to Right: Wake, custom-made water tank, by Jeff Thomson; Arabic text reads: “first house”; Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level, 2018, by Ursula Christel. Courtesy the artist and Mokopōpaki; Pilgrimage to Mecca, 1986, by Gavin Chilcott.

Ursula Christel’s floor piece, made for this exhibition, New Space / Takawaenga, is the result of her research inspired by the concept of inclusion and the geometry of the floor plan of the Dome of the Rock. This Islamic holy place stands on a site that is sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims – three of the Abrahamic religions.

Foreground: New Space / Takawaenga, 2020, by Ursula Christel.
Left to Right: Wake, custom-made silkscreened water tank, by Jeff Thomson; Arabic text “first house” (avvala baytin); Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level by Ursula Christel. Courtesy the artist and Mokopōpaki; Pilgrimage to Mecca by Gavin Chilcott; From the Eros and Psyche series (111), 1966/67, gouache on silk, by Joanna Margaret Paul, Courtesy M Paul;
two untitled corrugated iron sculptures by Jeff Thomson.

Like the Dome of the Rock, Christel’s, New Space / Takawaenga, is based on polygonal structures – of lines and repetitions of forms creating illusory space/s. Christel’s ‘new space’ is conceptualized not only in the multi-layered sight lines heading off at diverse angles across the space of the gallery but the stark checkered tiles also pull the eye to the pivot.

New Space / Takawaenga, 2020, by Ursula Christel. re-purposed wooden table (dia. 118 cm), 4 table legs (H: 46 cm), vinyl flooring, 3 mm acrylic sheets (83 x 83cm), glass chess board (38 x 38cm), ceramic tile (20 x 20cm), composite board (dia. 65cm), jute, LED lights.

The architectural references connect to her other work in the same gallery space, Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level, which also features circles within squares and vice versa.

Detail: Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level by Ursula Christel.

Left to Right: Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level by Ursula Christel;
Pilgrimage to Mecca, 1986, by Gavin Chilcott.

Gavin Chilcott, Pilgrimage to Mecca, 50 x 70 cm. Framed pastel on paper.
Courtesy: John Perry.

On the wall opposite was Talking Sticks by Carolyn Lye and above another text in Arabic. This read: “Until you have asked permission”

Left to Right: The Prison of Self, 2015, by Sonja van Kerkhoff, 20 cm diameter, photographic print, texts in Persian, Māori and English, and oil-based varnish. Edition of 35. Text is from the Hidden Words by Baha’ullah, founder of the Bahai Faith; Text in Arabic reads: “Until you have asked permission,”; Talking Sticks, Korare stems, acrylic paint – 5 pieces, by Carolyn Lye.

Left to Right: The Prison of Self, by Sonja van Kerkhoff; Talking Sticks by Carolyn Lye; Conference of the Stones, 2013, video with soundscape by Phil Dadson (link to a discussion of this work); Detail of New Space / Takawaenga by Ursula Christel.

Talking Sticks by Carolyn Lye

Left to Right: The Prison of Self by Sonja van Kerkhoff; Talking Sticks by Carolyn Lye; New Space / Takawaenga by Ursula Christel; Conference of the Stones by Phil Dadson.

The Māori title of Christel’s floorpiece, ‘Takawaenga’ (mediating/ed space/s), refers to a process. The work can also be read as an upside down table. A table that has been re-conceived in layerings, yet its circular form and central focus, created by the arrangement of the four legs, make it not a table but rather a direction for moving towards. In Sufi thought the lote tree of the outer limit (Sidrat al-Muntaha) marks the direction of all journeys. In choosing a circular table form and turning it over, the artist was inspired by George Dei’s words, “Inclusion is not bringing people into what already exists; it is making a new space, a better space for everyone.” 1

Left to Right: New Space / Takawaenga by Ursula Christel; Conference of the Stones by Phil Dadson; Peace Flight, 2011, giclée digital print by Brenda Liddiard. About her work >>

1. Dei, G.S.N. (2006). Meeting equity fair and square. Keynote address to the Leadership Conference of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, September 28, 2006, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

About the 24 artists in the exhibition >>

Carolyn Lye, based near Karetu, Northland, Aotearoa | New Zealand, is a fibre artist who weaves and works in natural materials.

Gavin Chilcott, born in Auckland, Aotearoa | New Zealand, in 1950 and attended Auckland Technical Institute in 1967 followed by three years at Elam, School of Fine Arts, Auckland, from 1968-1970. His first exhibition was at the Barry Lett Gallery in 1976 and since then he has exhibited widely throughout New Zealand and Internationally. He has been a recipient of numerous Arts grants and is represented in all major New Zealand Collections.

Sonja van Kerkhoff, born 1960 in Hawera, Taranaki, Aotearoa | New Zealand, has a diploma in Fine Arts (1980-82, Otago School of Arts), dip Secondary Teaching (1986), Masters equivalent with a double major (1989-93, School of Fine Arts, Maastricht, The Netherlands) and a MSc in Media Technology (2005-8, University of Leiden, The Netherlands). She lives in Kawakawa, Northland, Aotearoa / New Zealand and The Hague, The Netherlands. sonjavank.com

Ursula Christel, born 1961 in Durban, South Africa, is of Celtic/ Germanic descent, immigrated to New Zealand in 1996. She has a BA Degree, majoring in Fine Art and Art History (1979 – 81) and a post grad Diploma in Education (1982). She is an artist, tutor, writer and disability advocate, and worked as a writer, editor and photographer for the Celebrate Art series of educational resources, featuring New Zealand and Australian artists.
​

Detail of Huroof e Muqataat (The Disconnected Letters), chalk Arabic letters by Sen McGlinn on the inside of
Wake, corrugated iron water tank, by Jeff Thomson

Click for a larger view of this image.
Foreground: Wake, silkscreened corrugated iron water tank, by Jeff Thomson; New Space / Takawaenga, circular floorpiece, by Ursula Christel; Talking Sticks by Carolyn Lye;
Conference of Stones,
video and soundscape by Phil Dadson
Two texts in Arabic high on the walls read: ﯸ ﯷ (Until you have asked permission) and above the video: ةحال (The Stones)

Some of the works by 24 artists (listed here) were aesthetic responses to the 2019 Christchurch mosque massacres while others were re-contextualizations, or responses to the Qur’an and the diverse cultures and histories of Islamic worlds. A general aim here was to include Islam in a New Zealand aesthetic landscape, and to see what changes.

I will focus here on nine works in the show, and write separate blogs on the other works in the three gallery spaces.

The Arabic text above means “The Stones”
below detail of Conference of Stones,
video and soundscape by Phil Dadson
Photo: Ursula Christel

Click for a larger view.
Still: Conference of Stones 10 minute
video and soundscape by Phil Dadson

Click for a larger view.
Still: Conference of Stones, 2013, video and soundscape,
by Phil Dadson.
Filmed in HD 1920 x 1080 digital moving image, stereo recorded with Sennheisser microphones.
Credits:
Performed by Phil Dadson
Camera by Bruce Foster
Sound recorded by John Kim
Digital video/audio by Phil Dadson
Produced with the support of Pew Charitable Trust, CNZ Arts Council of New Zealand, Colab Creative Technologies,.
Watch an exceprt of this 3 screen video on vimeo.

Click for a larger view.
Conference of Stones, video and soundscape by Phil Dadson, Peace Flight, (far wall) Passion I and Passion III by Brenda Liddiard; A Matter of Faith, by Fiona Lee Graham; Kete Muka Tuatahi by Christina Hurihia Wirihana.

Click for a larger view.
Passion I and Passion III, 2010, Mixed media & collage on board, by Brenda Liddiard;
A Matter of Faith, 2020, monoprint, ink on paper, 150 x 100mm, by Fiona Lee Graham; Kete Muka Tuatahi by Christina Hurihia Wirihana.

Wake, silkscreened corrugated iron water tank,
by Jeff Thomson
The Arabic text on the wall beyond reads ‘The Heart’

Click for a larger view.
Detail of Huroof e Muqataat (The Disconnected Letters),
chalk Arabic letters by Sen McGlinn inside
Jeff Thomson’s water tank sculpture.

Detail of Huroof e Muqataat (The Disconnected Letters), chalk Arabic letters by Sen McGlinn
and Wake, corrugated iron water tank, by Jeff Thomson. Background: Conference of Stones, video and soundscape by Phil Dadson, Peace Flight, Passion I and Passion III by Brenda Liddiard;
A Matter of Faith, by Fiona Lee Graham;

Haykal Al Noor (Bodies of Light) by Narjis Mirza

Haykal Al Noor (Bodies of Light) by Narjis Mirza

Haykal Al Noor (Bodies of Light) by Narjis Mirza

Detail: Haykal Al Noor (Bodies of Light) by Narjis Mirza

Detail: Haykal Al Noor (Bodies of Light) by Narjis Mirza

A list of the 24 artists in this exhibition | Next blog on this exhibition >>

 
About these 8 artists

Brenda Liddiard is a visual artist and singer songwriter/musician based in Auckland, Aotearoa | New Zealand. She has been exhibiting her paintings since 2008. brendaliddiard.co.nz, and is co-founder of the fundraising art organisation, Art for Change (www.artforchange.net).

Christina Hurihia Wirihana, based in the Bay of Plenty, Aotearoa | New Zealand, is a weaver of Te Arawa, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Rangiunora, Ngāti Raukawa, Tainui descent. Wirihana is the Chairperson of Te Roopu Raranga Whatu o Aotearoa (National Collective of Māori Weavers in New Zealand). In 2014 this collective of weavers exhibited 49 tukutuku panels in Kāhui Raranga: The Art of Tukutuku at Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. These panels are to be installed early 2015 at the Headquarters of the United Nations in New York. In 2003 Wirihana received Te Tohu Toi Kē from Te Waka Toi Creative New Zealand for making a positive development within Māori arts. See: wikipedia.org/wiki/Christina_Wirihana

Fiona Lee Graham, based in Auckland, completed a Bachelor Degree in Design and Visual Art, majoring in Painting, at the Unitec, Auckland, in 2010. See: thegreyplace.nz/artists/fiona-lee-graham

Jessika Kenney, based in Los Angeles, U.S.A. is an experimental vocalist, composer, and teacher. She is most known for her performances of Indonesian vocal music (sindhenan), and Persian vocal music (radifs), as well as for her compositions drawing on elements of both. See her discography – jessikakenney.com

Jeff Thomson based in Helensville, Aotearoa / New Zealand is known for his sculptures and site-specific installations using corrugated iron as his main medium. His sculptures range from the well-crafted and iconic, such as his suite of New Zealand native birds, to the conceptual, such as his cut and corrugated ironing boards, or the add-ons he created for the roofs of houses scattered throughout the city of Whanganui, to the quirky, such as his water tanks, some filled with water, peep holes and motors. jeffthomson.co.nz

Narjis Mirza, born in Pakistan and now based in Sydney, Australia, is an installation artist. Her research examines the confluence of eastern philosophy with virtual reality, highlighting the transcendent philosophy of Persian philosopher Mulla Sadra (1571–1636). She completed her Master’s degree in Media and Design from Bilkent University Ankara, Turkey, after a Bachelor’s in Fine Arts with distinction at the National College of Arts in Pakistan. She is currently undertaking a PhD at the Auckland University of Technology. narjismirza.com

Phil Dadson, based in Auckland, Aotearoa / New Zealand, is a video & sound artist with a transdisciplinary practice including building and performing with experimental musical instruments, sound sculptures, digital media, music compositions, graphic scores and drawings. Moving image and foregrounding sound has been a feature of his practice since the early 70s, referencing the body, land, nature, and the human condition. He also founded the music/performance group, From Scratch (1974 – 2004). Awards & residencies include: US Fulbright 1991, NZ Arts Foundation Artist Laureate 2001, Antarctic Artist Fellowship 2003, ONZM 2005, Sankriti residency (India 2007), Artist Cinema commission 2010, Wallace Arts Trust Jury award 2011. thearts.co.nz/artists/phil-dadson

Sen McGlinn, born in Christchurch, Aotearoa / New Zealand has recently returned to live in the Far North after living in the Netherlands for almost 30 years. He has a Master’s in Islamic Studies from the University of Leiden, The Netherlands, where he is working on a PhD. He has authored and co-authored a number of books in Persian Literature & Iranian Studies. He has exhibited in sculpture parks and galleries since the early 90s. sculpturebysen.wordpress.com

To the next blog on this exhibition >>

curated by Salama Moata McNamara + Sonja van Kerkhoff

Open now until 31 May 2020
Artists will be at the gallery 12-3pm,
Sat., Sun., and Monday, 12-3, 23-25th May

Left to Right: Wave, custom-made water tank by Jeff Thomson
Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level by Ursula Christel. Courtesy the artist and Mokopōpaki
Pilgrimage to Mecca by Gavin Chilcott.
From the Eros and Psyche series (111) by Joanna Margaret Paul
Two untitled corrugated iron sculptures by Jeff Thomson
(foreground) New Space / Takawaenga (2020) re-purposed wooden table (dia. 118cm), 4 table legs (H: 46cm), vinyl flooring, 3mm acrylic sheets (83 x 83cm), glass chess board (38 x 38cm), ceramic tile (20 x 20cm), composite board (dia. 65cm), jute, LED lights by Ursula Christel.
New Space / Takawaenga is a conceptual assemblage inspired by geometry and the floor plan of the Dome of the Rock. It refers also to a quote by George Dei (2006) – “Inclusion is not bringing people into what already exists; it is making a new space, a better space for everyone.”
Takawaenga is a process. – Ursula Christel, 2020

Left to Right: Wave (detail), custom-made water tank by Jeff Thomson
Vitruvian Angel Man with Spirit Level (2018) by Ursula Christel. Courtesy the artist and Mokopōpaki Acrylic, gesso, printed perspex, metal lugs, pencil, sealant on board (99 x 61cm), plastic spirit level
(6 x 61cm). Gavin Chilcott Pilgrimage to Mecca Framed pastel on paper.
Arabic text above reads: “first house (avvala baytin)” A4 text below this begins with:
“Indeed, the first House [of worship] established for humanity was that at Makkah
– blessed and a guidance for the worlds”. The Qur’an, 3:96

This is one of 5 texts in Arabic arranged around the first gallery.
More about these texts and the works in the next blog.

still: “Haykal Al Noor” (Bodies of Light), site specific video installation by Narjis Mirza
with the soundscape, “Pamor” by Jessika Kenney
in this short video on youtube which also shows these works:
“Light District,” framed canvas, LED lighting, by John Mulholland;
“Halg” (Throat) video from the series Sokout/Silence, by Azadeh Emadi;
“Ka aroha” (Love), gouache and ink on paper,
by Salama McNamara & Emma Paton;
“Auckland Flowers 15/03/2019,” dried flowers, soil, compost, brown paper, by Java Bentley;
“Love is Blind,” embossed braille on paper,
by Tash Nikora;
“Fabric of Humanity” cast glass with impressions of a hijab pattern based on the hijab worn by New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in 2019 by Layla Walter;
“Fifty-one” an installation incorporating an assemblage of painted stacked cards and texts from Rumi by Michelle Mayn.

Some photos of the exhibition are here: artsdiary.co.nz

Still from the Manners of Speaking – Te Pūkoro o Tāne, Whangarei show under lockdown, 2020 12 minute video on youtube.

Still from the Manners of Speaking – Te Pūkoro o Tāne, Whangarei show under lockdown, 2020 12 minute video

In New Zealand things moved very fast. On Saturday evening we all heard news of a 4 step plan where we were at step 2, social distancing. Some libraries and swimming pools had closed on the Friday before. Then on Monday 23rd, when I heard of the gallery closure, we had moved to step 3 and then later in the day it was announced that New Zealand would go into lockdown, step 4, at midnight on Wednesday 25th.

Still from the Manners of Speaking – Te Pūkoro o Tāne, Whangarei show under lockdown, 2020 12 minute video

Still from the Manners of Speaking – Te Pūkoro o Tāne, Whangarei show under lockdown, 2020 12 minute video

Still from the Manners of Speaking – Te Pūkoro o Tāne, Whangarei show under lockdown, 2020 12 minute video

I must go and publish the video here on youtube and then I will return to another blog later. In the meantime here is a link to a blog I wrote for a Dutch Arts Review website “CONNECTING ART IN A TIME OF CRISIS: New Zealand –The Netherlands.”

Left to Right: “HearSay,” soundpiece, 2018, recording of a generated audio work, by Jonathan Reus.
Two paintings by Roger Morris. “Trope,” 2018, oil on canvas, 190 x 75 cm by Raewyn Turner and ceramic works by Jess Paraone. Two small works by Sonja van Kerkhoff. “Pandora’s Box” 5 piece suspended double side painting by Alexis Hunter.

Left to Right: “HearSay,” soundpiece, 2018, recording of a generated audio work, by Jonathan Reus.
“Enduring Freedom” and “‘Axis’ ONE” Oils on board by Roger Morris.

“HearSay,” was created by an algorithm which recombined recordings of news broadcasts from CNN, MSNBC and the BBC of an underground slave trade emerging in Libya as reported by CNN in October 2017. The story of the slave trade in Libya was reported through rumors and collections of stories by migrants stranded in local detention camps. This work highlights the problem of news organisations presenting images of truth when these are based on fragmented and subjective testimony.
This is one of several algorithmically generated sound works by Jonathan Reus, which explore the aesthetic elements of news broadcasts, by contrasting the authoritative voices of news reporters to witnesses, foley sounds, and background music used to enhance drama in the macro and micro sonic. A first sketch of this work was created during the Transmarcations work session in Brussels, 2017 organized by http://constantvzw.org

“Trope,” 2018, oil on canvas, 190 x 75 cm, by Raewyn Turner. Ceramic works by Jess Paraone.

“Binary investigations,” 2 piece glazed ceramic, “Binary investigations,” glazed ceramic, “Liminal,” ceramic, “Binary with foundation,” partially glazed ceramic by Jess Paraone (Ngāti Kawau, Kaitangata).

 
The rows of zeros and ones stamped into the slab-like “Binary series” works by Jess Paraone (Ngāti Kawau, Kaitangata) play off against expressionistic abstract colours and glazes. These numbers can be read simultaneously as abstract element and as symbol for the human or mark of the human made machine. The central piece, from the “Liminal” series is a rolled slab of black dyed raku clay and porcelain clay – materials with very different properties. The contrasting materiality (rough vs smooth, brittle vs elastic) and colours invite multiple readings on the theme of oppositions, compatibility, and diversity.

“Liminal,” slip cast porcelain slab + raku clay coloured with black stain, fired to 1260 degrees celcius, “Binary with foundation,” glazed porcelain and brick by Jess Paraone. Click for a larger view.

Ceramics by Jess Paraone

Left to Right: St Cyricus, plastic, artificial flowers and Epoxy, 40 x 15 x 60 cm by Brit Bunkley; Netting, wire and acrylic, by Michelle Backhouse; Pouhine (red basket form), harakeke (flax), muka (flax fibre), commercial dyes. Raranga + whatu (Māori weaving techniques) by Adrienne Spratt; Lake Alice Water-tower, plastic, paint and artificial flowers, 60 x 12 x 12 cm, by Brit Bunkley; Into the pink, wire and acrylic, by Michelle Backhouse; Cleaning the Air, 43 sec video + Daily Dishes, 7 min 11 sec video by Pietertje van Splunter; Oil on canvas by Edward Walton; From the War / No War series, six laser print on card reliefs (obliquely on the wall) by Hohepa; Kete Pingao, 20 x 10 cm, woven basket by Brenda Tuuta; Herenga rahi (Big connections/confinement), harakeke, muka, tanekaha bark and paru dyes. Raranga, whatu (Māori weaving techniques, suspended basket) by Adrienne Spratt.

Left to Right: St Cyricus by Brit Bunkley, Netting by Michelle Backhouse.

L to R: Een Rode Citroen (A red lemon), 2015, 9 min 53 sec., video + soundscape by Anne Wellmer; Oil on canvas by Edward Walton; Lake Alice Water-tower + St Cyricus by Brit Bunkley.

The flower could be a sign that nature always endures, always has some measure of self-sufficency, while the static cultural innate object gains or loses meaning if its function is lost. However in foregrounding the materiality of these sculptures, such as details in the greyer than grey facades, he reminds us that this is still artifice, it is still plastic, and in the end this is a sculpture of oppositions that forces us to take our own stance.

Left to Right: Kāinga a roto (Home Within), suite of 5 videos (on laptop) by Sonja van Kerkhoff, Adumbrate No. 2, 2014, wire netting + Untitled, 2017, wire netting and building paper by Michelle Backhouse; Oil on canvas by Edward Walton; Een Rode Citroen (A red lemon), 2015, animation, 9′ 53” by Anne Wellmer. Soundtrack: Anne Wellmer. Drawings: Geerten Ten Bosch. Animation: Harriët van Reek. Text excerpt from The Writing Notebooks (edited in English by Susan Sellers) by Hélène Cixous. Voice: Stephie Büttrich-Kolman.

Still from Vox Sanguinis (Voice of the blood), 1’53”. Video and soundtrack: Anne Wellmer. Video and soundtrack: Anne Wellmer. Camera: Florian Cramer. Voice: Cora Schmeiser. Music: “O rubor sanguinis” by Hildegard of Bingen. Trumpet: Heimo Wallner. Silent performer and stage design: Geerten Ten Bosch

Left to Right: Warm Memories, emulsion on five suspended teabags by Martje Zandboer; The Happiest place on earth, plastic, paint and artifical flowers, 55 x 45 x 10 cm, by Brit Bunkley; Kāinga a roto (Home Within), videos (on laptop) by Sonja van Kerkhoff; Adumbrate No. 2, 2014, wire netting + Untitled, 2017, wire netting and building paper by Michelle Backhouse; Oil on canvas by Edward Walton; Transfusionen (Transfusions), 2015, video with sound, 2′ 43” by Anne Wellmer. Sound: Anne Wellmer. Hands: Geerten Ten Bosch. Voice: Cora Schmeiser. Music fragment from BLAST (2015) by Lukas Simonis. Text fragment from ‘Della Religione Christiana’ by Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499), first published in Italian in 1568. This German translation was published in ‘Das Blut: Symbolik und Magie’ (Blood: Symbolism and Magic) (2004) by Piero Camporesi; St Cyricus 3D plastic print sculpture by Brit Bunkley.

The sounds from these three videos were the soundscape of this show unless one put on headphones to listen to two of the other videos in the exhibition. Under two spatial abstractions of wire by Michelle Backhouse was the suite of videos, Kāinga a roto (Home Within), by Sonja van Kerkhoff (More >>) and around the corner was the 29 minute video, Et in Arcadia Ego by Channa Boon.

Left to Right: Et in Arcadia Ego, 29 min video by Channa Boon; Love of the other, 10 cm diameter, print on aluminium by Sonja van Kerkhoff; Muka and taniko kete, harakeke muka, tanekaha bark + paru dyes. Whatu and taniko (Māori fibre and weaving techniques) by Adrienne Spratt; What kind of Idea, print on dubond by Sonja van Kerkhoff (More >>).

Virgil’s phrase ‘Et in Arcadia Ego’ is also the title of a famous painting (1638) by Nicolas Poussin. The painting shows a group of shepherds who discover the phrase on a tomb, and so become aware of the existence of death in their Arcadian existence. This gives them the capacity to reflect and thus develop self-awareness. In this video, Boon connects this loss of innocence of the Arcadian shepherd – signifying an ideal world that is destroyed forever – with the present and past of the former Soviet Union. Hence, the phrase becomes a reference to the ideal world that Communism aimed to bring about in this region and the nostalgia that it still invokes.

Left to Right: The Happiest place on earth, plastic, paint and artifical flowers by Brit Bunkley; Enclosure No. 1 wire netting + paperpulp by Michelle Backhouse; The Image (The spectacle is mesmeric in order to be successful), silkscreen print and mixed media (More >>) + Where change is barely visible, 2008, laser print by Sonja van Kerkhoff; Kete Whakairo (on table), dyed flax basket by Brenda Tuuta; Et in Arcadia Ego, 29 min video by Channa Boon.

Left to Right: Mauri, harakeke, raranga (Māori weaving techniques) by Adrienne Spratt; Josephine’s Mother, print on aluminium, acrylic and varnish by Sonja van Kerkhoff (More >>); Bird of Prey, mixed media video loop by Sanne Maes; Untitled + Dark Entries, black and white photographs + The Speed of Dark, models on a shelf by Thom Vink; Warm Memories, photographic emulsion on teabags + magnets by Martje Zandboer and The Happiest place on earth, plastic, paint and artifical flowers, 55 x 45 x 10 cm, by Brit Bunkley (More >>).

Left to Right: detail of Girl with Iberian Lynx by Michelle Backhouse; Oil on canvas by Edward Walton; From the War / No War series, six laser print on card reliefs, each is 10 x 15 x 2 cm, by Hohepa; Poutama (Step pattern), cylinder shaped basket + Herenga rahi (Big connections/confinement), harakeke, muka, tanekaha bark and paru dyes. Raranga, whatu (Māori weaving techniques) by Adrienne Spratt.

On the other side of the gallery space are two more woven vessels by Adrienne Spratt. The enormous basket sways from numerous lines. Its title refers to both connection and enclosure.

Pouhine, Harakeke, muka, commercial dyes.  Raranga and whatu techniques by Adrienne Spratt.

On the adjacent wall a frieze relief of reproductions of paintings from Hohepa’s War / No War series uses Maori cultural symbols as commentary issues of the day. Below this is a small purse-like open pingao (a New Zealand natuve yellow grass) basket by Brenda Tuuta.

In another corner lines flow out from the red basket, Pouhine by Adrienne Spratt, which blur its contours. The title refers to the pattern woven into the sides.

Left ot Right: Detail of Into the Pink, wire and paper pulp + Girl with Iberian Lynx by Michelle Backhouse; From the War / No War series, six laser print on card reliefs, each is 10 x 15 cm, by Hohepa; Kete Pingao, 20 x 10 cm, woven basket by Brenda Tuuta; Poutama (Step pattern), cylinder shaped basket + Herenga rahi (Big connections/confinement), harakeke, muka, tanekaha bark and paru dyes. Raranga, whatu (Māori weaving techniques) by Adrienne Spratt, Paewae (Threshold), aluminium print (above doorway) by Sonja van Kerkhoff; Lake Alice Water-tower, plastic sculpture by Brit Bunkley; Josephine’s Mother, print on aluminium, acrylic and varnish by Sonja van Kerkhoff; Mauri (essence/spirit), harakeke, raranga (Māori weaving techniques) by Adrienne Spratt; Detail of Bird of Prey, mixed media video loop by Sanne Maes.

Left to Right: From the War / No War series: Warrior with Taiaha, Patu-paiarehe lovers, black and white laser prints on card, Warrior with Taiaha, Mākutu, No more war with Taiaha laid down, Rangatahi, colour laser prints on card, each piece approx. 10 x 15 x 2 cm, by Hohepa; Kete Pingao, 20 x 10 cm, woven basket by Brenda Tuuta.

Left to Right: Into the pink, wire and acrylic, by Michelle Backhouse; Detail: Lake Alice Water-tower, plastic, paint and artificial flowers by Brit Bunkley; Cleaning the Air, 43 sec video + Daily Dishes, 7 min 11 sec video by Pietertje van Splunter.

Still from Cleaning the Air by Pietertje van Splunter.

Still from “Bird of Prey” by Sanne Maes

Still from “Cleaning the Air” by Pietertje van Splunter

The Poetic Condition | De dichterlijke Aard
The Shutter Room
7 Rust Avenue (opposite the public library entrance)
Whangarei

7 Dec – 14 January 2017
Wed-Fri: 12 noon – 4p.m., Sat: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Disarm (mechanized) by Pedro Reyes in Pulchiri, The Hague.

“For Pedro Reyes the process of transforming weapons into objects of positive utility was more than physical. “It’s important to consider that many lives were taken with these weapons; as if a sort of exorcism was taking place, the music expelled the demons they held, as well as being a requiem for the lives lost.” Artlyst.com, 25 Sept, 2015

“Pedro Reyes’ work is a socio-political critique on contemporary society and our responsibility towards it. His projects are catalysts for communal and psychological transformation, triggering group interaction and creativity.

Disarm is a demand for towns and cities across the world to relinquish their weapons and transform them from agents of death to agents of life. It is an attempt to highlight the invisible violence that underpins the international industry of death and suffering: the commercial and government complicity that allows for weapons to be made and sold by public companies for shareholder profit; the laws banning assault rifles which go neglected; and the films and video-games which depict trigger-happy heroes. For Reyes, an idealist whose projects affect real change and are often explicit attempts to improve the society around him, a world free of guns is a human right, and a utopian ideal to which we should all aspire.” Lisson Gallery, 2013, London.

Pedro Reyes was born in Mexico City in 1972, where he lives and works. He has won international attention for his large-scale projects that associate social issues with imaginative solutions. Pedro Reyes was awarded a Medal for the Arts in January 2015, by the US State Department for his continued commitment to the State Department’s cultural diplomacy outreach.

See his website or his blog for more.

TodaysArt Festival, hosted annually since 2005 in the Hague, focusses on the presentation and development of contemporary visual and performing arts and emerging culture. About the 2016 edition.

Waitapu (sacred water) Wairere (flowing water) by Vallance Wrathall, New Zealand, for the first session for the 2016 Water Works online symposium curated by Ian Clothier which will air, New Zealand time, on March 19th at 4pm. Tune in here: water-wheel.net/taps-list

“The placement of this installation at Ngamotu beach, New Plymouth, was in relation to the historical significance this water source had with the people of this area, extending as far back as the 1600s through to today. Water has a story to tell, we as people need to take our time to listen.” Vallance Wrathall, 2016.

This will be your last chance to tune into to watch the annual water themed presentations and performances using the Waterwheel interactive, collaborative platform from March 19 onwards http://water-wheel.net/taps-list (This link shows you the time and date in your local time for the 7 sessions spread over 34 hours. You only need to log in if you wish to comment.) Run marathon-style, each 2 hour session will be broadcast from a different part of the world.

Screen capture during ‘100 Names for Water’ talk by Ulay during the opening of the “Water Views: Caring and Daring – Waterwheel World Water Day Symposium 2014.” The images of Ulay (in Slovenia) and Suzon Fuks (in Brisbane) show the live video feed in a ‘stage’ panel where you can add up to 6 ‘video windows’ as well as text, slideshows or drawings. The live text chat is on the right. You can watch this talk here: water-wheel.net/media_items/view/4851

Some of these presentations are later published, and in 2014 an e-book was published which you can view here >> blog.water-wheel.net/2015/02/e-book-water-views-3WDS14.html
Here 450 participants, from 34 countries across 5 continents, interacted with audiences in real time on the internet and in 18 physical venues or ‘nodes,’ using the Waterwheel online video and sound platform. The symposium, held 17-23 March 2014, also focussed on a youth & inter-generational dialogue “Voice of the Future” strand.

Waterwheel was co-founded in August 2011 by Brisbane-based artist, Suzon Fuks, the design studio Inkahoots, who developed this, and the arts organisation Igneous, which manages it. It has never had any paid staff and the resources for its development from Australian national and Queensland state government arts funding were for artists who did projects using the platform. So now after 5 years the 2016 annual water themed online conference will be the last.

So to wet your appetite for this year’s theme Water Works – where 22 curators from 19 countries will discuss selected entries and respond to an online audience in a streaming event on Waterwheel.

The programme overview is here: http://bit.ly/WATERworks-programme

Indian classical singer Mahesha Vinayakram will open and close “Water Works” with a performance.

The first two hour session (water-wheel.net/taps/view/854) will be presentations of videos selected by San Franscico-based artist and teacher, Michele Guieu (micheleguieu.com/wordpress) followed by a presentation of seven New Zealand artists, curated by Ian Clothier (ianclothier.com) who runs the biannual media art residency and symposium SCANZ(www.intercreate.org) in New Plymouth where he lives.

The next session (water-wheel.net/taps/view/855), starting 2 hours later, is curated by Katarina Djordjevic Urosevic ((artskylight.com), Serbia), Joanna Hoffmann (University of Arts, Studio for Transdisciplinary Projects and Research, Poznan, Poland) and artist Pascale Barret (pascalebarret.com), Belgium)

Water Works session #3 (water-wheel.net/taps/view/856) is curated by:
West D.L. Marrin, an applied scientist in biogeochemistry, pollutant dynamics, water resources, and aquatic ecology. His lectures focus on global water quality threats, hydromimicry practices, and the water-energy-food nexus. He is a former adjunct professor at San Diego State University, U.S.A.;
Claudia Jacques & Victoria Vesna (waterbodies.org). Claudia (claudiajacques.com), currently a PhD candidate at the Planetary Collegium, CAiiA Hub, University of Plymouth, UK., researches space-time aesthetics in the user-information-interface relationship through the lens of Cybersemiotics. Intersecting art, technology and science, she designs interactive hybrid art and information environments that aim to explore perceptions of space-time and the digital-physical in the pursuit of human consciousness. Victoria (victoriavesna.com) is an artist and Professor at the UCLA Department of Design | Media Arts and Director of the Art|Sci center at the School of the Arts and California Nanosystems Institute (CNSI))
and Lila Moore (mdx.academia.edu/LilaMoore), an artist film-maker, screen choreographer, networked performance practitioner, and theorist based in Israel. She is a post-doctoral researcher at The I-Node of the Planetary Collegium, Plymouth University, UK, and holds a doctorate from Middlesex University in Dance on Screen which explores choreography for the camera and screen-dance in the contexts of performative and hybrid art forms, with special reference to ritual and myth from a feminine/feminist perspective.

Water Works session #4 (water-wheel.net/taps/view/857) is on sound art works and is curated by Leah Barclay, Eric Leonardson and Ricardo Dal Farra.
Leah Barclay (leahbarclay.com) is an Australian interdisciplinary artist, composer and researcher who specialises in electroacoustic music, sound art and acoustic ecology. Leah has received critical acclaim for her immersive performances, installations and large-scale community projects that explore volatile environments ranging from the central Amazon Rainforest to the floor of the Australian ocean. Her work is multi-platform in nature and often involves long-term community engagement accompanied by the development of virtual platforms to explore the value of digital technology in environmental crisis. Her diverse creative practice has resulted in a dynamic freelance career where she works as an artist, consultant, educator and researcher with various organisations and institutions. These include designing immersive education programs for UNESCO, directing large-scale interdisciplinary research projects for major universities across Australia and the USA and facilitating partnerships between communities, NGOs and government to explore creative approaches to climate action.
Eric Leonardson (ericleonardson.org) is a Chicago-based composer, radio artist, sound designer, instrument inventor, improviser, visual artist, and teacher. He has devoted a majority of his professional career to unorthodox approaches to sound and its instrumentation with a broad understanding of texture, atmosphere and micro-tones.
And Ricardo Dal Farra (linkedin.com/in/ricardodalfarra) is an Argentine composer and multimedia artist, researcher, educator, performer and curator focusing mainly on new media arts and electroacoustic music for more than 25 years. Dal Farra holds a PhD in Etude et pratiques des arts from Université du Québec à Montréal and is Founding Director of Centro de Experimentación e Investigación en Artes Electrónicas – CEIArtE (Electronic Arts Experimenting and Research Centre) at National University of Tres de Febrero, Argentina; Associated Researcher at the Music, Technology and Innovation Research Centre, De Montfort Univerisity, United Kingdom; and Senior Consultant for the Amauta – Andean Media Arts Centre in Cusco, Peru.

Water Works session #5 (water-wheel.net/taps/view/858) is curated by:
Eklavya Prasad (linkedin.com) a social development professional who has led a grassroots campaign in rural north Bihar, New Dehli, India, since 2005 on decentralized and alternative drinking water solutions;
Atefeh Khas (atefehkhas.com) an Iranian artist who specializes in environmental installations, and is a member of the environmental artists group “Open Five” since 2005,
and Catherine Lee + Margaret Shiu, directors of the Bamboo Curtain artist residency studio (bambooculture.com), in Taipei, Taiwan.

Water Works session #6 (water-wheel.net/taps/view/859) is curated by:
Tracey Benson (canberra.academia.edu/TraceyBenson) a media artist and academic based in Canberra, Australia;
Amin Hammami (linkedin.com) previously a lecturer in Cinema, Audiovisual and Sound Art at the Higher Institute of Multimedia Arts of Manouba in Tunisia and now at the University of Dammam in Saudi Arabia. He has been involved with Waterwheel since 2011.
Tracey Benson (canberra.academia.edu/TraceyBenson), and
Amin Hammami (linkedin.com) previously a lecturer in Cinema, Audiovisual and Sound Art at the Higher Institute of Multimedia Arts of Manouba in Tunisia and now at the University of Dammam in Saudi Arabia. He has been involved with Waterwheel since 2011, and
Camilla Boemio (camillaboemio.com), an Italian curator focussing on socio-political developments within contemporary society. She was Deputy Curator of the Maldives Pavilion at the 55th Venice Biennale and was consultant for the art-science section at ISWA European project (Immersion in the Science Worlds through Arts).

A workshop on audio recording and streaming
(water-wheel.net/taps/view/860) by the London arts collective, Soundcamp (soundtent.org). Technologies for setting up a temporary or long-term live audio stream using a mobile phone or a laptop as well as a dedicated streambox out of low cost components, using the Raspberry Pi micro processor and Primo microphone capsules to make up cheap, high quality stereo microphones, will be demonstrated.
Real time audio has the potential to create a compelling connection to a site, which can directly convey much of the feel and uniqueness of a location. A small but significant group of projects is establishing a network of streams from diverse soundscapes around the world. Some of these events are SoundCamp 2016, (30 April – 1 May 2016), a 24 hour live stream of audio radio around the globe for International Dawn chorus Day (idcd.info) on May 1st, the Locus Sonus open microphone network (locusonus.org), the Balance Unbalance conference on acoustics and ecology in Colombia (9-11 May 2016), and World Listening Day 2016 (18 July 2016).

Water Works session #7 (water-wheel.net/taps/view/861) is curated by:
Annie Abrahams (bram.org) based in France, she is an pioneer of networked performance art.
Russell Milledge (researchgate.net) a co-founder of the interdisciplinary artists’ collective Bonemap (bonemap.com) which is concerned with the ecological edges of civilisation while creating immersive art and performance based in far northern Australia. Projects often engage Cape York, Torres Strait Islander and international contemporary artists.
Jason Grant (Australia)

And the waterwheel blog is an archive of water related events: http://blog.water-wheel.net

The former San Lorenzo church (Ex Chiesa di San Lorenzo) contains plinths from the first church built here in the 6-9th century. The current building dates from 1580-1616. More history about this building. Photographs: Sonja van Kerkhoff, 2013.

Detail of the Mexican Pavilion at the 55th Venice Biennale in the former San Lorenzo church.

Detail of the Mexican Pavilion at the 55th Venice Biennale in the former San Lorenzo church.
Click to view this in a larger format.
The San Lorenzo church, known for its acoustic qualities was last used in 1984 as a venue for the opera Prometeo by avantgarde composer, Luigi Nono.

“Cordiox,” by Ariel Guzik in the Mexican Pavilion of the Venice Biennale, 2013.
Photo: Sonja van Kerkhoff.

The Mexican presence at the Venice Biennale was a compact wooden platform which occupied about a quarter of the space inside the derelict San Lorenzo church at the edge of a large square, about a 10 minute walk from Saint Marco square.

This disused stone and brick building from 1580-1616, has been loaned to the Mexican Government for 9 years as an art and architecture venue on the condition that they renovate it. I think this is a brilliant step. Now Mexico has a semi-permanent location which involves bringing life back to a derelict building and the long term arrangement means that visitors in future years will find their way back to an ongoing project.

Stepping into the church, visitors were confronted with a heightened sense of the spatial. The wooden platform provided views down and around the rubble and ongoing repairs in the rest of the church. The wooden minimalist platform -the pavilion- within this historic shell functioned like a metaphor for the postmodern where layers and traces of the past coexist with the present continuous.

An ambiant sound work by Mexican artist, Ariel Guzik eccentuated this sensation of being in several time frames at once. The sounds from his “Cordiox,” a 4 metre high 180 string instrument, translated vibrations caused by any movment in the space into subtle sounds. Sounds that were simultaneously the sounds of the acoustics of this building, to which the artist had tuned his instrument. So what you experienced were the sights and sounds of this instant of your physical presence on this platform combined with this instance of the church’s acoustic interior. It was if the rubble was murmuring.

 

Photographs and review of the Mexican Pavilion the former San Lorenzo church by Sonja van Kerkhoff is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License