Writting for Extra Muros

A statement that the three of us wrote for the exhibition we curated in March:

Through the collaboration of three artists, all of
which choose a different directionality in their
practice, we made the decision to produce ‘In
Site1’, the blending of three entities, ‘Site’, ‘Sight’
and ‘Cite’. ‘Site’ became the prominent focus
of the three primarily based on the exhibition
consisting of site-specific artwork along with the
collective standpoint of being in a site culturally
different from our own, all of which were in
reference to Extra Muros’ intention to encourage
the presentation of our work within an alterative
context. This theme continued in the aesthetical
and conceptual decision in the promotion of the
exhibition, in the production of three posters, all
of which consisted of three varying designs of the
tripod motif each drawn separately by the artists.

The collaboration came about through aesthetic
similarity in the production of the ‘object’
alongside comparative materiality. Although not
all work corresponded conceptually there were
contextual threads throughout including the
performativity of gender evident between Ecoptic
Entities (2014) and She disintegrated perfectly,
but never reappeared (2014), along side the
comparative manipulation of projection light in Veil
(2014) and Surface Pleasure (2014).

In Site1 was a nocturne event only available to
audiences during the evening of 26th March
(2014). Due to their being no natural light
available during this time, we were presented
with the opportunity to pay specific attention to
the arrangement of the lighting with just as equal
integrity to the space. The exhibition consisted
of various different types of lighting, each chosen
with an alternative purpose. In correspondence
to the exhibitions intention; the joining of three
entities, lights that were each designed for a
specific application, were brought together in
conjunction to the individual artists requirements.
Lighting such as projections, construction lights,
desk lamps and theatrical lighting each divided
the space to create opposing atmospheres within
the site.

When in discussion of the curatorial decisions
with lighting of the exhibition, issues that needed
to be considered included the affect that the
lighting of one work could have on another. It was
evident through experimentation that different
lighting choices could dramatically alter the
ambience of the exhibition through the difference
in their brightness and colour.

Each work in turn was chosen through the
creation of a narrative, a narrative aided by the
graduation of lighting, which subconsciously
designated the audience’s path. The exhibition
commenced from within a dramatic instillation
lit solely by the use of a beamer, chosen for
its immersive qualities situating the audience
immediately within an artwork. It was our
intention that through the immediate captivation
of an audience within a narrative, this would then
lead onto the wider narrative of the exhibition as
a whole, where the other spot lit artworks might
become props or cues towards an overarching
theme. The dim entrance was in contrast to the
final room encountered by the audience, which
focused on the presence rather then the absence
of light. It was important that the conclusion to
exhibition encompassed a collection of each
aspect featured throughout the exhibition as a
whole.

Jed Fielder, Rose Leahy, Stephanie Hardy.



Statement by myself about the works I installed for the exhibition:

The works produced on occasion of the exhibition in site1 existed as a
static constellation of my recent studio practice. It was directly linked to
my immediate thinking process, where I spent the week leading up to the
exhibition creating new site-specific, temporary works in the space. In
relation to the ideas and concepts of the exhibition, I was considering the
space as a direct output for the work. I wanted it to feel like a terminal or a
platform for viewing, that would provoke an examination between seemingly
disparate works. I tried to make the preparation and configuration of my
work for the Extra Muros to be a useful application within my practice,
looking into the different conditions under which the work is created,
formatted, exported and documented, and how this could be considered in
relation to the underlying themes and considerations of my current studio
practice.

The body of work itself was curated in a way that primarily looked at
equivalencies, mainly to do with juxtapositional and metaphorical montage
used in filmography. Throughout the space I was altering the direct
encounters or registration of the work, agitating them in different ways to
create an uneasy and indeterminate environment, where the works are
trying to describe each other, highlighting a superficial gap between how
they were made and what they represent. The status of the works vary, they
inform one another and try to articulate a sensation other than, or equivalent
to, their own. I’m dealing with manipulations of volume and deceptions of
surfaces, exploring the compatibility of different mediums. The encounter of
the work in the exhibition is a paradoxical act, they become props towards
a whole narrative, connecting them as a series: paraphernalia for viewing.
They materialise from nothing, stemming from a digital or superficial realm,
all of which is initially encountered from a circumstance of immaterial
experience.

The physical installation and arrangement of the works was playing with
the dual meanings and connotations of the word ‘site’, I did this in a way
that shifted conventional methods of display. Works were placed on top of
each other or positioned close to one another, others had a forklift pallet
or a plank of wood on wheels for a plinth, some were also lit by over-head
projectors. I considered this to be like a construction ‘site’, where there was
a strong material presence and where objects are movable and temporary.
I applied these ideas to again refer to something with equivalent qualities;
a comparable atmosphere or stage set. The work in the exhibition was
in close proximity to each other, where works would sometimes literally
impinge on each other, encouraging an audience to search for these cues
and similarities.

Jed Fielder