Here we all are : sculpture, ingenuity and urban environments : an exegesis submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Masters of Fine Arts at Massey University, Wellington
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Date
2023
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Open Access Location
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Massey University
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Abstract
This exegesis discusses a selection of artworks that consider community actions in public space and urban environments where agency, ingenuity, potential, and tension intersect. I am interested in how people living in a place, not councils or businesses, enact these “events” to more closely align spaces with their needs and beliefs. I have used a visual and sculptural art practice to attempt to sharpen our focus on these actions and consider how they might shape the future of our cities. This project has also been informed by my experience of living in Ōtautahi Christchurch as a teenager following the destructive 2011 earthquake, and subsequent observations of the city and its ongoing rebuild. My research is grounded in an understanding that the social and spatial structures of our cities have evolved, as advancing technology and ever-increasing privatisation contribute to an erosion of free spaces and opportunities for connection in the civic realm. I have located my practice in relation to other artists and writers whose work engages with the creation and experience of public and urban space and community, including Fiona Connor, Paul Cullen, Kate Newby, Jenny Odell, Chantal Mouffe, and Rebecca Solnit.
Description
Images are reused with permission.