A.sark
don't dream it, experience it
Enter the old tailor shop front on a side street in Nicosia, Cyprus. Take the spiral staircase in the back of the room upstairs to the mezzanine. There on your right hand side, about a foot off of the floor, the video projection begins and then ends around eye level. Includes moving images and sound taken in Cyprus, approximately 5 minutes long.
Stalked a man, approximately 40 years in age and extremely tan, with long hair and a good-sized gut. Followed him throughout the day as he worked on a beach in Protaras, Cyprus, setting up umbrellas and dragging around large banana shaped beach chairs. Proceeded to drag around a lawn chair at the site of empty shell structures that were meant to become tourist accommodation, about a mile down from the previous beach. In a different setting, sat on a street corner in Nicosia, Cyprus and observed. Let the events unfold unaltered. Recorded all of these circumstances with a mobile phone and SLR camera.
As part of an artist residency and in conclusion an exhibition, I wished to use tourism as a way of seeing while in Cyprus. Drawing parallels between ‘artist’ and ‘sightseer.’ I wanted to simply record what was taking place around me.
for the visitors
Take the stairs from the ground floor of the Mackintosh building up to the Mackintosh Museum. Directly in front of you you’ll find a coat hanger/shelf made of wood, metal and glass. Visitors are free to leave their coats there, but are not being told to do so.
Bought two sheets of glass and incased them in wood. Painted the wood a deep stain of mahogany, the same color as the wood in the interior of the iconic Mackintosh building. Connected the two shelf levels with metal brackets and attached decorative coat hooks to the face of the shelves. Drilled the coat hanger/shelf into the wall of the Mackintosh museum. This is intrusive, but there was permission given for the shelf to exist there. Put some coats and an umbrella on it to imply that it could be used.
Went to Temppeliaukion (Rock) Church in Finland. I liked it. I liked the coat hanger built into the side of the rock wall near the entrance of the church. Wished to install some kind of ‘mock-intosh’ object into the historical space of the Mackintosh museum. Was inspired by idea of the Temppeliaukion coat hanger and by the way the Mackintosh building continues to exist straddling the line between functional and art. Deemed the most important architectural building in the United Kingdom brought attention to its preservation, yet constructed by Renee Mackintosh to be used and eventually worn down.
Conclusively, the coat hanger, the mackintosh building, and the iconic monuments around the world all hold a similarity of temporality.
Wanted people to use it.
i am an american tourist
Take the stairs to the basement of the Mackintosh building. At the end of the corridor on your left hand side you will find the Mackintosh Lecture Theatre. Push open the swinging wooden doors and inside you will find a video projection at the front of the lecture theatre. Includes moving images and sound taken in Peru and other various locations, approximately 15 minutes long.
Went on a holiday/ research trip to South America, specifically Peru and Bolivia. Recorded my experiences in form of both visuals and audio with no specific intentions. Edit and strung the footage together, adding some animation and combining with additional footage taken in various other locations outside of South America. Recorded all of these circumstances with a mobile phone and SLR camera.
Because I wanted to travel to Peru and Bolivia and have an ‘off-the-beaten-track experience.’ Afterwards it was clear that this wasn’t what took place, and I want to discuss this through film. The westernization of these sites is clear with any manipulation and myself in the position of a visitor is apparent.