The next major exhibition at Campbelltown Arts Centre puts up a giant mirror that offers a reflection of what this neck of the woods is all about.
Coming hot on the heels of the ground breaking Another Day in Paradise by executed Bali Nine leader Myuran Sukumaran, the new exhibition confirms that the Campbelltown Arts Centre is rapidly becoming a pioneer in arts innovation.
The latest exhibition, looking at me through you, which will be launched this Friday, May 26, is a forensic examination of the things that matter in Campbelltown.
But because the issues explored by the 12 Australian artists – some of them local – who participate in looking at me through you are universal to all of Western Sydney they will resonate also for residents across this region, from Parramatta to Penrith and Liverpool to Lidcombe.
These new works interpret and interrogate notions of urban development (and underdevelopment), cultural identity and shifting political debates.
The result is a unique self portrait of Campbelltown, the type only artists of the 21st century can create.
The participating artists are Abdul Abdullah, Sonia Leber and David Chesworth, Andrew Christie, Mona Ibrahim, James Nguyen, Pet Projects, Tom Polo, Keren Ruki, Damien Shen, Salote Tawale, Shevaun Wright and 110%.
The artworks contributed to looking at me through you by Western Sydney based artists Keren Ruki, James Nguyen, Mona Ibrahim, Tom Polo and Andrew Christie explore their own connections and interactions with Campbelltown and the broader region.
These artists have witnessed first hand the rapid transformation and changing social landscape of Campbelltown and Western Sydney.
The juxtaposition of these works with the artists who have explored Campbelltown with an outside eye, while working closely with the community to develop their works, offers an extensive and collective depiction of Campbelltown as a place.
“We’re using the power and innovation of contemporary art to genuinely reflect the core of the region,’’ says the director of Campbelltown Arts Centre Michael Dagostino.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“Both in a physical and metaphoric sense, looking at me through you goes beyond the national approach, revealing genuine local insight and engagement from an authentic perspective.[/social_quote]
“The Campbelltown and Western Sydney theme is at the very heart of our approach, conveying a local narrative in a global context, interrogating the latest ideas and forms in contemporary art.
“The projects have many socially engaged aspects, with some artists working directly with the community such as Keren Ruki, Damien Shen, James Nguyen, Abdul Abdullah and Sonia Leber and David Chesworth, while other artists have taken an approach that is more analytical, dealing with hard facts and using Campbelltown and their experience of it as the foundation of their research and artwork,” he said.
SNAPSHOT
WHAT looking at me through you exhibition
WHERE Campbelltown Arts Centre
WHEN 27 May – 23 July, 10am – 4pm
Opening night: Friday, May 26, 6pm, featuring Knafeh Bakery’s Bearded Bakers, open to the public.
The Arts Centre is another project that we can thank John Marsden for