THE NAKED CITY
Night of the Landlord Dread
MikiNobu Komatsu Selected Works “Ecstatic” is the word photographer MikiNobu Komatsu uses to describe his reaction the first time he took in the sights of New Zealand’s South Island. “The landscape is very dynamic... Alps, glaciers, fjords, desert-like barren tablelands... All of these in a small island when you see it on a map, but it’s actually vast when you’re in it,” says the talented photographer. This juxtaposition of being both small and vast at once is at the heart of Komatsu’s exhibition, subtitled The Complex Simplicity of Landscape. Komatsu’s exhibition of landscape photography at the Black Eye Gallery underscores the photographer’s fascination with the South Island and the marriage of light and darkness on landscapes. He notes, “Although landscapes look simple, for me they have depth, layers, different moods, and evoke different emotions... The rich quality of light acts as a portal through which I feel I’m encountering another world, perhaps beyond the physical reality.” The exhibition promises to be an equally transcendent experience for viewers. (SW) Until Apr 6, Black Eye Gallery, 138 Darlinghurst Rd, Darlinghurst, free, blackeyegallery.com.au ‘Rakaia River at Dusk’ by MikiNobu Komatsu
From the Streets
Gentrification – it can be a nasty word, a bit like ‘eugenics’ and ‘ethnic cleansing’. All three generally involve those with power and authority imposing their will on an often hapless minority. Hey, does that sound a bit familiar? Like what’s happening with the proposed eviction of public housing tenants from Millers Point and The Rocks? Earlier this week the media quoted real estate agents and developers, smacking their lips as to how wonderful this ‘gentrification’ will be for this traditional working class, public housing estate. Paralleling the grandiose high rise of Barangaroo across the road. Despite what will probably be a hardfought campaign on the part of Rocks residents to retain their homes, there’s an awful inevitability about the whole process. Money, the scramble for the milliondollar view and the prestige of living adjacent to James Packer’s towering monolith are bound to override the years of tenure and tradition established by the public housing community. The jewel in the crown is the twelve-storey, LEGO-like Sirius building, which sits along the approach to the Harbour Bridge and contains seventy-nine ultra saleable apartments. It’s long been the target of the tabloid media, outraged that public housing tenants are afforded those ‘milliondollar’ views of Circular Quay for a greatly reduced rent.
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If we can draw a cinematic analogy, the whole saga reads like a souped-up zombie movie. The normally rabid flesheating posse have switched their focus to that of gobbling up prime real estate, storming the traditional terraces and ripping old-aged pensioners from their beds. Once the O’Farrell Government declares the area open for plunder, the zombie real estate lurch will begin with a ferocity that not even George A. Romero could imagine. If you thought Putin’s annexation of Crimea was brutal wait til the Beamers and Benz clog the streets of the Rocks as the gentrifying zombies converge on the prized Sirius building. There will be cries of anguish at first when they see how small the apartments really are but they’ll soon realise that if you buy up an entire floor you can achieve the space that your status deserves – not to mention those million-dollar views! As sleek coffee shops and upmarket restaurants join the lurch, the zombies will turn their attention to a complete social cleansing of the area. Terraces will be transformed, restored to a condition that is beyond pristine and delivery vans will unload tonne after tonne of upmarket furniture and priceless antiques. Meanwhile, the bus to Claymore will patrol the almost fully cleansed streets, rounding up the last of the public housing tenants and whisking them out of sight, out of mind. As every piece of desirable real estate is consumed by these insatiable real estate zombies attention will soon be directed at a fresh field of plunder. Look out Woolloomooloo – they’re coming to get you!
Street art by Beastman
19TH BIENNALE OF SYDNEY Australia’s biggest contemporary visual arts festival, the Biennale of Sydney, will kick off on March 21st. The festival, held every two years, will exhibit artworks across Sydney from both local and international contemporary artists. The three-month long festival will also host artist talks, forums, film screenings, family days, performances, guided tours, and other special events. Two Berlin-based international artists, Hadley Howes and Maxwell Stephens, will exhibit their installation, entitled Manners, Habits, and Other Received Ideas, at Carriageworks in Redfern. “It’s our first artwork with the Sydney Biennale and it’s our first time in Australia,” Maxwell Stephens says. “We really enjoy it here, the climate is particularly amazing.” Howes and Stephens’ installation features sculptures made using a black aluminium foil normally used for cinematic lighting effects, called Cinefoil.
When pressed onto other sculptures Cinefoil forms a temporary skin over the sculpture. When removed the impression of the absent sculpture remains on the Cinefoil. The artists use these impressions to create the final sculptures. “We look especially at gestures, symbols of power, symbols of status and different criteria like this,” Stephens says. “We have collected this huge inventory and from that inventory we make new structures. It’s the largest use of the material and we’ve evolved from human figures into architecture, so it’s a step forward for us.” Howes and Stephens have been working together since 1997. They see the Biennale as important for sharing artistic ideas between artists. “It’s like the equivalent of a conference,” Stephens says. “It’s this exchange between international artists and artists from Australia.”
The 19th Biennale of Sydney: You Imagine What You Desire begins with a launch party on March 20th at the Australian Technology Park, organised by The Events Authority. Tickets for the opening night party are $150. (FM) Until Jun 9, various venues, free, biennaleofsydney.com.au
Photo: Gunther Hang
By Coffin Ed, Miss Death & Jay Katz
Raw, unpredictable and distinct, street art is starting to make waves in the art culture of Australia. With .M Contemporary Gallery showcasing a major street art exhibition called From the Streets, street art is moving from laneways to lounge rooms. Michele Paterson, Director of .M Contemporary Gallery, says the exhibition is designed to open people’s minds about what street art is and its accessibility. “Street art is one of a kind, it’s stenciling, painting, posters, sculptures. There are so many different forms of it, and it is a gift that the artists give for free,” she says. The exhibition is trying to change the way people think about art and collecting art, and show the way different mediums can become valuable collectables. “I want new people looking at art and collecting it, it’s about getting people talking and thinking about art,” says Paterson. “Street art is becoming a bit of a thing in Australia now.” From the Streets will showcase some amazing works from both local and international artists, including Morley, Beastman and Jef Aèrosol. (SOC) Until Apr 27, .M Contemporary Gallery, 37 Ocean St, Woollahra, free, mcontemp.com
‘Manners, Habits, and Other Received Ideas’ by Hadley+Maxwell