WINDOW ROOM EXHIBIT :
FELIXE RIVES & SARAH CATANIA
Exhibition dates. 18 - 29 May, 2022
Opening Reception : Thur 19 May 2022, 6:00 - 8.30pm.
“ Wait, are you looking outside?”
“ Yeah, of course !”
“But isn’t there just a brick wall outside your window ?”
Felixe Rives , Sarah Catania
The relationship between the inhabitant and the home is ever changing and due to the pandemic, we have all spent extended periods of time at home. This project investigates the mental and emotional strain the numerous lockdowns have had on us as a society. Reflecting on personal experiences, this work aims to capture the feeling of being stuck both physically and mentally. We are constantly looking out of the window for an open escape only to find more windows as our normal outside world is narrowed down and the architecture density of the city prevents us from having a proper visual escape.
Our approach to these darker themes are expressed playfully through the use of bright colours, aiming to reveal these intensified emotions and to bring some positivity and changes to the way we view these spaces.
The Interview
Interview with artist
FELIXE RIVES & SARAH CATANIA
Exhibition: 18 -29 May 2022
1. The window exhibit is befitting of an artwork that explores the notion of being stuck inside. Was the work custom made for the window room and how do you think the space influences the reading of the work?
Conceptually, we already had an idea of what the artwork was exploring and the visual representation of the emotions, however the placement of it within the Window Room allowed us to push the artwork further. The sizing of the work was custom made to fill the entire space of the window. Placing the work within the Window Room added another layer of meaning, pushing the absurdity of a window within a window.
2. Can you explain the creative process of working as a duo and what you each contributed to the creation of this artwork?
We each have our own individual styles, ways of making art and expressing ourselves, however we both explore the personal experience of the everyday. As Sarah deals with more abstract representations of emotions, feelings and thoughts, Felixe grapples with the more physical experience and visuals in space. We each felt the need to express our own frustration of the same situation and thought that in bringing the two components together we would have a more in depth view of the experience we have all shared. As we are currently in different states, both of us made our parts separately, with Felixe located in Sydney and Sarah in Melbourne. Felixe painted on a polycarbonate clear sheet leaving lines as gaps and windows clear for Sarah’s printed and stitched fabric to be seen hanging behind. The work came together for the first time when we installed it in the gallery.
Q & Photography : BLACKCAT GALLERY & Isabella Imperatore
The Exhibition view
