‘This is the gallery and the gallery is many things’ is an evolving exhibition/performance/space/event where artists will respond to or add to and change the existing conditions of the gallery.
’We are active through art – art as a key human function. We use what we can while it works. We want new life. We have joined together to execute functional constructions and to alter or refurbish existing structures as a way of surviving in a capitalist economy.’ – Eastside Projects
The way that Eastside Projects continually has artists work not only just in the gallery but physically into the gallery turns the space an art piece itself. Certain pieces especially, like the curtains that separate the entrance space from the main portion of the gallery and the colourfully resin filled cracks in the floor look like they belong perfectly in the space. This makes the gallery different to any I’ve experienced before. It’s like a shared working document, evolving and developing its own story and history that can be physically seen – ‘a living documentation of what happens when you use your imagination in society’.
Another interesting thing that Eastside Projects does is create user manuals alongside their exhibitions outlining what the space is made of, who it is for, how it can be used and what it has to offer. They say that ‘As would be necessary for operating a machine or learning a subject, a manual may be helpful when encountering Eastside Projects for the first time.’
This is one part of a collection of pieces in the gallery that I was most interested in. It’s a piece that I feel like fully belongs where it is, rooted into the floor of the space. It isn’t typical for an artwork to be displayed on the floor, with the ability to mall directly over it. There’s a contrast between the brighter colours and varied array of objects and materials and the natural stone floor of the gallery. This artwork could be directly reflecting the theme of ‘art made public’ that Eastside Projects believes in.
Rooted
floor
Interactive
Found objects
