42days 42boats 42installations

42days 42boats 42installations

42days 42boats 42installations

Beatrice Magalotti

42days 42boats 42installations This project is my response to the COVID19 Stage 4 lockdown in Melbourne, originally announced for 42 days in August 2020.

Melbournians were limited to travel within a 5km radius and only allowed to leave home for four reasons: one hour of exercise; shopping for essential items; authorised study or work; and care or caregiving. An 8pm to 5 am curfew was also imposed.

This self-directed project focused my time and energy and helped me to remain productive during the lockdown. I created 42 ceramic boats - one for each day of the lockdown.

After stage four restrictions relaxed I was also able to photograph the boats outside the 5km radius from my home. I photographed them in different environments and shared them across the globe digitally on Instagram.

I couldn’t leave Australia, but my boats could.

Movement was restricted but not imagination.

I contacted a number of artists and asked if they would be interested in collaborating with me by photographing the boats in new locations.

With their help these little ceramic boats made it out of Victoria and travelled across the world, connecting us in solidarity against a pandemic at its height. They were photographed in new environments in Western Australia and across Europe and America.

It is important to me that art is enjoyable, and so I gave very few instructions, encouraging my collaborators to play with the project. This took courage and trust, but their subtly differing perspectives on the theme ultimately produced more diverse work.

Not all of the nine women I collaborated with for the interstate and international element of this project identify as visual artists. Among them are an architect, a curator and an engineer.

Together we made art as these women brought their own experiences and creativity to the work.

By using social media to exhibit these images, I’ve been able to reach audiences that might not have attended a physical exhibition. These audiences have been able to engage with the project over several months, following the boats as they left Melbourne, Victoria and, finally, Australia. Many of the locations used in the installations are recognisable environments, providing a sense of familiarity, connection and inclusion in the work.

Like the crude and fragile stitches on the sides of each boat, the pandemic has forced many of us to patch, mend, and forge new paths. For artists like myself, that meant rethinking our practice, being innovative in our methods and finding new ways to engage with our audiences.

By doing part of this project as a durational and digital work, I was able to continue exploring travel and migration through a global pandemic. I have compiled a number of the images into this book and intend to physically exhibit the ceramic boats, book and photographs together.

Beatrice Magalotti 2022

Fairfield Amphitheatre, Melbourne, Australia

Wilson's Promontory, Australia

Missouri, USA

Pickle Springs, Genevieve, USA

Galway, Ireland

Cleggan Pier, Galway, Ireland

Kylemore Abbey, Galway, Ireland

Kylemore Abbey, Galway, Ireland

San Marcos, USA

San Diego USA

Niels Bjerre, ' Insektmenneske', Hollufgård Sculpture Park, Odense, Denmark

Freja Niemann Lundru, 'Spiralgenese', Hollufgård Sculpture Park, Odense, Denmark

Königsweg Bridge, Dreilinden, Germany

Königsweg Bridge, Dreilinden, Germany

Scripp Aquarium San Diego, USA

Wilson's Promontory, Australia

British Museum, London, UK

The Lion of Knidos, British Museum, London, UK

Wedgwood Factory, Stoke-on-Trent, UK

Spode Factory, Stoke-on-Trent, UK

Pickle Springs, Genevieve, USA

Point Lonsdale, Australia

Odense, Denmark

MS Spirit of France, English Channel

Airspace

Berlin, Germany

Begitte Andersen & Marie Retpen, 'The Greenhouse, Hollufgård Sculpture Park, Odense,Denmark

Begitte Andersen & Marie Retpen, 'The Greenhouse, Hollufgård Sculpture Park, Odense,Denmark

Alphington, Australia

Odense, Denmark

Köln Train Station, Germany

Train-Travelling to Poland

Kölnisches Stadtmuseum, Köln, Germany

Calder Terrace, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen, Denmark

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen, Denmark

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen, Denmark

Telfer Mine,WA, Australia

Trafalgar Square, London, UK

Judy Chicago, 'Through the Flower 2', de Young Museum, San Francisico, USA

Clare Twomey, 'Monument', Paris Museum of Modern Art, Paris, France

Paris, France

Raoul Dufy, 'Electricity Fairy', Paris Museum of Modern Art, Paris, France

Naminapu Maymuru-White, 'Riŋgitmi gapu', NGV, Melbourne, Australia

Squeaky Beach,Wilson's Promontory, Australia

Rye Beach, Australia

London Embankment, UK

Alibi Hostel, Former Prison, Leeuwarden, Netherlands

Delphi, Galway, Ireland

Wilson's Promontory, Australia

Squeaky Beach, Wilson's Promontory, Australia

Lawrence Noble, 'Yoda', Imagination Park, San Anselmo, USA

Diamond Bay, Australia

42days 42boats 42installations I am always looking for ways to collaborate with other women and encourage participation in the visual arts. My deepest thanks to all the women who helped in putting this project together.

Amy Caterina @amy_caterina Audra Hubbell @audhubs Begitte Andersen @begittelyngeandersen Helen Foster Kathryn McKenzie @katbemck Marguerite Elliot @marguerite101 Meghan Clark Miriam Donohue @miriam_donohue_music Sarah McKenzie Sharyn Madder Wendy Gers @wendygers 42days 42boats 42 installations ©Beatrice Magalotti 2022 www.beatricemagalotti.com @beatricemagalottiart Design: Beatrice Magalotti & Amy Caterina @a_plus_b_projects This book is a special limited edition.

Signed and numbered by the artist.

Image on back cover, Bay Bridge, San Francisico, USA