Keness. Studio

Speed Processing Slowly (27th Feb - 9th Mar, 2017) diary and reflection:

 

This is an exhibition using gallery (Project Space Plus) as a laboratory for artists actively engage and approach the processes of what they do. Basically, we started with nothing so we went to a pub to discuss the difference and commonality between me and the other four artists.

 

Then, we came up with an idea - 'shift changing'. It is an idea for us to adopt others' working process and try to step out of our 'comfort zone' because the studio practices that we are working on individually  are so different. Each of us have considered to adopt to one or more than one unfamiliar practices and confirmed 'Process Shifters' as our group name.

 

On the first day, Orinta chose drawing (through body movement) and placed separate pieces of paper on the floor. The intent for the first activity was to draw for 10 minutes with two pens, thinking about my dream work in my studio practice and how she might explore dreams in the now, in the moment. After 10 minutes, Charis was invited to contribute to the piece, either to re-arrange the pieces of paper or to mark them through body movement. He chose to be blindfolded, expressing himself rather vigorously for 10 minutes. Afterwards, we placed the paper back into an orderly square and tried back to back conversation about dreams whilst sitting on the paper. Our eyes would be closed and we would take turns describing our dreams to each other, and drawing at the same time on the paper. Throughout, we documented and recorded the process and what is happening on video, how the work is changing, and where it may lead to. At the end, I created a short video of the whole activity.

 

On the second day, we adopted a hybrid of Orinta's performance studio practice and Effie’s studio practice through makeup. The separate sheets of paper from yesterday included markings from a collaborative ongoing performative process. We are contributing our own marks, differences and patterns on top of each paper, constantly transforming and changing the visual. For today, restriction of the body was tested out in comparison to Tuesday’s freeness of the body (mark making through dreams, conversations, and the eyes closed). Rope was suspended from the ceiling and attached tightly to the waste, restricting full body movement and engaging the mind to think more about each movement as it is physically impacting the body. Paper is placed on the floor in a square shape, giving us a perimeter to work from. With a long stick with a marker pen stuck at the end, we would be making marks from a distance. Having tested the restriction one by one, two us would take turns at the same time to restrict one another whilst maintaining a balance.

 

The second part of the day centred around makeup on the face. Orinta and Charis did a portrait on my face with body paint. The idea of shifting the position of subject and object, we used face as medium for portrait painting. Artist became part of the artwork and created interaction with other artists during the process. Also, Orinta and Chair have to do the painting based on their relationship and cognition of me. It elaborated the concept of expression and representation of identities. Orinta would create a visual design on one half of my face and Charis would use the other. At the end, we would take a piece of paper to capture the design on the face, that also captures my facial features and my identity.

 

On the third day, we adopted Charis’ studio practice and Effie’s studio practice through found objects. We used recycled materials to create an installation on and around my body. Orinta and Charis split the creation process into two halves; Charis creating his design on the right and Orinta on the left of the body, similar to Tuesday’s process and the gender difference/ divide. At first we would cover my body with a see-through white sheet, to create a design on top, working on the separate sides and finally moving into another area against the wall. The work expanded from the body onto the wall and onto the floor as an installation piece. Viewing the design at afar, there was a visible sculptural element and a clear difference of the working process of both sides. I being inside the sculptural creation (approximately 3 hours) gave a live art performance presence, a durational performance piece activating the materials on top of her. Towards the end, we used rope to transform the whole design into something other and the work started to resemble Charis’ studio practice - a vortex, but this time, a human body is present inside. The rope was used in a way that tied everything up from the bottom bringing it to the top, by scrunching and manipulating the original shape and form. The last conversations from the group about the appearance and current shape of the installation on me - gender and fertility.

 

One day before the exhibition, we started to edit the documentary of our process that we had recorded throughout the past few days.

 

On the exhibition day, we prepared all our works as a group and arranged the use of the gallery space.