‘‘<Bright Cave>’’ (Blue Oyster Art Project Space)
‘‘<BRIGHT CAVE>’’ transcends boundaries between artist and materials to ponder the materiality of art in a world of ecological chaos. Through several looselyrelated works, six artists analyse the interconnectedness of humans and nature, creativity and creation, tangata and whenua.
The exhibition’s title reflects Plato’s analogy of reality seen as a shadow on the wall of a dark cave. In these times of ecological crisis, we have to leave our gentle fantasy to face the stark reality of the world and reassess our place in it.
The display, curated by Robyn Maree Pickens, consists of multimedia works — ranging from Miranda Parkes’ massive textile mural and Emma Fitt’s korowailike wall hanging to Sorawit Songsataya’s gentle collation of pressed violas. This latter work echoes the Victorian obsession with collection and categorisation, and humanity’s vain attempt to pigeonhole, and thus control, nature.
The exhibition is, in my mind, bookended by videos by Parkes and Songsataya. In the former, a child plays on a beach; in the latter, a rainstorm is viewed from beneath a pane of glass. Just as the child has fun grasping sand, so too humans enjoy their tiny attempts to ‘‘grasp’’ nature. The rain hammering the glass, however, makes it clear that the real power of nature is not so easily tamed.