Artspace launches exhibition "to and fro"

Artspace launches exhibition to and fro

Curated by Amelia Hitchcock
July 12 - August 23

Artspace is proud to announce to and fro curated by Amelia Hitchcock as the culmination of her one-year curatorial training position with Artspace.
For the duration of to and fro the Artspace gallery will be populated with the performative practices, of Hana Aoake, Darcell Apelu, Audrey Baldwin, Julia Croucher, Sean Curham, Virginia Kennard, Zahra Killeen-Chance, val smith, and Alexa Wilson with side projects by Robert Carter and Kelly McDowell.

The artists will participate in a series of overlapping residencies, where workshops, events and other moments of interaction with the public will be shaped via negotiation and accumulation of shared knowledge; back and forth, to and fro.

Hitchcock has established an experimental framework, that seeks to provoke a collision of idea(l)s and practice/s, transforming the gallery into a site of both presentation and enquiry, research and output. She says “I’m interested in what happens when the gallery space is given over just for performance for a period of time – what that length of engagement and flexibility of the venue offers artists and where they’ll go with it,”. Some of the work is pre-planned, some is still being made, and some of it will not be finished within the context of the project.

The eleven artists are diverse in background and artistic trajectory. Collectively their experience spans art, dance, choreography, philosophy, art history, theatre, and activism. Following Hitchcock’s elected model ‘conversation as a method of production’ the group has been in dialogue in the lead up to the project. She has also commissioned Christchurch designer Tessa Peach to design a studio and meeting place within the Artspace gallery, a point from where the project will unfurl.

Fluid, the exhibition programme will change daily, punctuated with: July 11, 5:30pm Alexa Wilson will perform the New Zealand debut of her work Star/Oracle, which has previously been performed in Europe and America. Christchurch based artists Julia Croucher and Audrey Baldwin who often perform together, will create both solo and collaborative works for to and fro including an opening night performance of Lashes. On July 19, the two artists will work collectively with Dunedin based artist Hana Aoake on a day of actions around post-colonial identity. Hitchcock has also worked with artists Robert Carter and Kelly McDowell on satellite projects based in the Artspace Mezzanine.

Established in 2004 the Curatorial Assistant programme (formerly Internship) was the first of its kind in New Zealand. Since then, Artspace has been training curators in a one-year mentored position in which candidates receive first-hand experience of every level of Curatorial practice. The Artspace Curatorial Assistant role continues to be a vital instrument in growing the experience and professionalism in contemporary art in New Zealand.
Artspace would like to acknowledge the very generous support of Dame Jenny Gibbs towards the Curatorial Assistant programme.

Visitors information

During to and fro the gallery will be open to public

Tuesday – Friday 1 pm – 6 pm and Saturdays 11 am – 4 pm.

Day-to-day programming will be posted on the Artspace website
www.artspace.org.nz

At times during the exhibition there will be some performances containing
nudity or material that could be inappropriate for some people.

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