Installation Works at Carbon Arc Independent Cinema

Carbon Arc Cinema Running throughout the festival, with two focused viewing times: Opening Reception Thursday May 9 5-6:30PM Installations Cocktail Reception Friday May 10 4:30-7PM FREE

Under the Rug: The Invisibility of Art Labour Installation Exhibition

Under the Rug is an animation exhibition that reflects on the often laborious process of creating art, and the disconnect between art's consumption and creation. The show features the work of performance and multimedia artist Annie Onyi Cheung, visual artist Angela Henderson, film and theatre artist Tara Taylor and interdisciplinary artist Tom Elliott. Each artist has created an animated response to the theme through the lens of their respective practice. Their individual installations can be seen throughout the festival grounds: in the boardroom, the hallway, the coat room and the screening room, making the exhibition a part of instead of an addition to the festival.

Slow Suspending- Annie Onyi Cheung

ln Slow Suspending Annie reinserts herself into her work as her animated body summersaults, rolls, and bounces from the edge of each frame. This piece is a reflection on the anxiety and endless preparation involved in creating work. The invisibility of her art labour is both the odd and contradictory work of turning inward, protective, sheltering, insulating, incubating, and the quiet solitary time she spends pushing herself uphill to a better vantage point in her practice.

Thresholds (A Lapidarium)-Angela Henderson

Angela’s installation responds to the theme of hidden labour in artist’s work by animating labour through accumulation. Her sculptural installation uses a found fragment of terrazzo stone from a nearby demolition site that is traced, frottagged and brought laboriously into view. The surface folds in and out of focus, gradually building and receding in an endless loop. The projected imagery, ephemeral and delicate, reels and animates within the black rectilinear column, amid the pedestrian flow of the event.

Nan T- Tara Taylor

A homage to Tara's grandmother, Nan T dances between the literal and abstract meaning of the word rug. Animated imagery of Nan T crocheting a rug combined with photos documenting the animation process are projected onto sculpted shapes. Blending imagery of these two stories allows viewers to envisage the labour behind the scenes as they are immersed in the nostalgic world of Nan T. How often do we enjoy artwork without giving any thought to the labour that went into creating it?

So Much Doesn't Happen- Tom Elliott

So Much Doesn't Happen rests on the premise that it is easier to imagine the end of the world than to imagine the end of capitalism. Tom's work is a kind of poem that playfully suggests the invisibility of art labour through animated text and sound interventions that happen around a set of boardroom tables. The connections and disconnections between these interventions and the realities we experience create a tension that viewers may find mildly agitating.