Carriageworks is back to doing what it does best – pulling together strange and wonderful art and making it free to explore. From February 12, Carriageworks Public Space and Bay 19 will be filled with a constantly evolving display of art installations, screenings, performances and writer residencies. No Show is a three-week presentation of work from 11 artist-led initiatives from across NSW, featuring the work of more than 50 largely early-career Australian artists and writers.
The line up includes an interactive exhibition by Studio A, a social enterprise which supports artists living with intellectual disabilities. Visitors will be invited to explore the internal universes of three studio artists as they enter a self-styled fortress painted by Mathew Calandra, sit with performance artist Skye Saxon as she reads tarot cards, and join artist Jaycee Kim in creating a giant rainbow plait as he slides between identities. There’ll also be a performance series and exhibition by studio artists from Parramatta Road studio and gallery project Our Neon Foe; a group show featuring five emerging artists from long-running Aboriginal artists co-operative Boomalli; a solo exhibition by artist Ella Sutherland presented by Alexandria based ANKLES; a conceptual art project from Camperdown artist-run initiative KNULP; and an exhibition from new Parramatta artist-run space Pari. Online arts publication Running Dog will facilitate three one-week micro-residencies during the exhibition, that will see emerging writers June Tang, Anne-Marie Te Whiu and Chloe Whatfern (in collaboration with Skye Saxon from Studio A) produce and publish new work in the space and online.
The show will be housed within a demountable, recyclable structure designed by Sydney-based architects Youssofzay + Hart. Created using off-the-shelf materials, the structure is light and modular, featuring discrete but connected spaces that will support the program of exhibitions, screenings, residencies, talks and performances.
For many months last year, the beloved Carriageworks multi-arts centre faced an uncertain future, before it was saved from closure. Now as we enter the strange new world of 2021, the historical building in Eveleigh, a former locomotive workshop, will act as a facilitator for artists to share ideas to help us understand, challenge and escape from the world.
The exhibition is free to roam from Wednesday to Sunday between 10am-5pm. Pre-booking is not necessary, but all visitors must register on entry and wear masks. Find out more about the No Show program here.
