no more wishing

the wish tree at LIVE FUTURES, harking back to our Lurkers event where hopeful for the Copenhagen summit, we hung wishes for those attending. it can be hard to not remain disempowered.

so you're going to start to notice a lot of permaculture related blogging on this site as its become one of my primary interests in the last year. ive found myself, in the city, longing for a need to connect to the origin of things- where things have come from and how they fit into my cycle of being. a growing concern for the state of the environment, ( i won't say "climate change" because it's time to say Ecological Crisis ), and the way the food industry impacts upon this has become predominant in my everyday life as i take on a number of gardens, start an interest in foraging and supporting "artists" and "activists" (because that's what organic permaculuralists and even vege gardeners are) in their endeavours to re-educate for the future. we need to look backwards in order to look forwards and become connected- grassroots stylez.

currently alexander and i are getting our first vege patch ready for spring. we are also (with our friend el) maintaining a balcony garden at COFA- even though I don't attend there. with our very close friend and fellow artist victoria we have been allowed as 'guardians' to some land in wombeyan caves where vic is hoping to start a journey to self-sustainability. we are weaving these ideas into our current artworks as they become entangled in our everyday lives..

that- is very briefly, an overview of where I am at right now. you will hear much more on the matter as i consolidate my ideas in post form.

no more wishing:

alex at LIVE FUTURES where we worked on the COFA permaculture patch (balcony vege container garden).

Teddy Bear's Picnic

The guys who restored a little of our faith in the Sydney art scene again (post: Cosmic Peephole) put on a very curious little event recently attended by some Punk Monks Alex, Kaitlyn, Kate, Felix and Michael.

Space|space became a cocoon for anti-nostalgic delight this week as this little bear did go down to the woods (and got a small fright). Stuffed teddys hunted and mounted as trophies decorate one wall whilst a particularly yonic spaghetti kaleidoscope twists and turns upon the other. There is a Warhol-esque pyramid of tinned spaghetti (curiously foreboding and ominous) beneath a set of tweaked childhood photos of teddys ripped open revealing spaghetti insides.

Most of the already quite cosy shed space was occupied by a large pink inflated pillow with another quite yonic opening. Informed that we were to go inside this pillow, which I did not dare until I'd consumed enough beer ( just in case I was to be met with the fright promised if you dare enter the woods...) we watched as people delved in and squeezed out in what appeared to be some warped form of rebirth.

The fright came early however, as we were all quite distracted and jolly from the comical womb entry/exit and the surrounding vibes from what was a cool bunch of people, resounds is Lamb Chop's famous and creepily catchy tune "This is the song that doesn't end (yes it goes on and on my friends..)" and out burst two over sized rabbit/bear (?) heads on smaller white jumpsuit clad bodies bearing silver tongs. They dance eerily as bystanders sport some classic nervous looks almost more comic than the act itself. The purpose of the tongs is revealed as heaps of spaghetti is pulled from the pockets of the jumpsuits and forced upon each other's faces. "Ooohs" and "ughhss" follow and then the earlier distributed plate's printed prettily with little rabbits are suddenly dirtied with slops of spaghetti from within the creatures stomachs.

Eventually the crew lessens as the performance settles and left are enough to fill the floaty womb cramped with a dozen giggling, giddy peoples, housing a stuffing fight paramount to tearing apart the insides of a teddy bear. The Arc funded alcohol steadily in consumption, childish antics ensue- stacks on, more stuffing battles, wine fights and some very poorly tasted joke swapping. I missed out on the inevitable spaghetti fight but with my hair matted with bits of white fluff and wine seeping through my jumper, the night had already exceeded all expectations.

Much credit to Haidee Ireland and Eric Davidson of space|space collective for thinking outside the square and putting on an interactive mind warp of a night which said "stuff the reputation of art shows as boring and/or pretentious, let's have fun!"