“What have I walked into!” exclaimed Visitor X as he surveyed a bunch of people engrossed in discussion, a girl creating her self-portrait and a few others happily dancing to Michael Jackson’s scratched cd. The girl put her camera down, smiled at him and matter-of-factly said “Oh… we’re having this… yes, this exhibition” she indicated with a sweeping gesture. “It’s called ‘Illuminate’”, she helpfully added. “Oh… oh wow, can I look around? Is it too late?” he asked, looking charmed. “Sure” she said as she took the camera up again. “Come” he said to his friend as they eagerly walked through the UV light into an installation of gigantic proportions…. Oh wait! Did we just get ahead of ourselves? Of this story? We’ll just begin at the beginning (though we don’t promise to stop!) 'Illuminate', as The Art Menagerie's (TAM) first interactive exhibition, explored the intriguing concept of identity. ‘Who am I?’ formed the central theme. Visitors to the 'Illuminate' exhibition were stunned to know it was our first exhibition, correction- first interactive exhibition. They were graciously taken around by the Menagerines- resplendent in their artistic personas. It was an evening that happily extended past the witching hour thanks to intrigued passer-bys, art junkies and supportive family members (of the Menagerines). “So… what is this? Who are you?” demanded Visitor X after a leisurely stroll around the venue. The girl was arranging her artwork now. She looked at him amusedly and said “Uhmm… this is an exhibition called ‘Illuminate’. We’ve all been working on our pieces for the last months, minimum. Our theme was conceived in collaborative brainstorming sessions after the very successful ‘White Nights’. We wanted to know our Menagerines through their self-perception and use light as a transformative medium. A wide variety of media ranging from perspex to rice paper, horticultural cloth, leather, string, found objects such as umbrella, paper lanterns and bags to industrial materials like resin, ceramic, plywood were used. Lighting techniques, as well, ranged from battery powered LEDs, UV Lights, Projections, Electric lighting utilizing tungsten and energy saving as well as candles! Visitor X took a deep breath and said “Wow. That would have been a lot of hard work. It all sounds pretty technical and intense to me. I could never do it.” The girl stood up straight, looked him in the eye and said “There is no place for the word ‘impossible’ in the Menagiverse! You just need a vision and all of us will work together to make it happen. (To be continued)
The third illuminate workshop was buzzing with excitement on Sunday 23rd June, at Studio Chan Andreassend. It was great to see lluminate exhibition pieces in development, and visualise the space in its full illuminated glory. Creative ideas were being discussed animatedly, imaginations ran wild, and there were eyebrow raised faces as the question “Why are you doing this?” was being answered. It was a realisation that lost creative dreams could become a reality, This is the epitome of what The Arts Menagerie is about. We want to create an exciting, collaborative environment, brainstorm opportunities, and help one another to make them a reality. It was definitely inspiring for us to hear the feedback from those that attended the workshop.
See you all next Sunday! (next Illuminate Workshop is being held on Sun 30 June, 2:00 PM @ Chan Andreassend) What people thought... Very welcoming and inspiring. I had said something very stupid because I was nervous and I expected the leader of the group to laugh and start mocking me in front of everyone but he didn’t! Instead he encouraged me and did not make me feel silly. I am going back! Salesa Pepe Enjoyed the positive energy and ideas - thanks :) Chandra Excellent, inspiring. Farzad Zamani Always a five star experience :) Neha |
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