Thursday 20 August 2020

OTHERS AILYOS 2019 Leysin Switzerland

 




This installation of five ‘invisible’ figures is created to acknowledge the displaced, alien and imported members of the AILYOS community.

It is a tribute to the people who though, not indigenous, inform and enrich the community.

Inspired by a chance meeting of refugees housed in Leysin and my own experiences as a third culture citizen who attended The American College of Switzerland, the work examines the dance between local and foreign, familiar and foreign.

It invites questions regarding the positive impact outsiders have on the local economy, culture and customs. 

On a wider stage, it asks how the principles by which we construct our immigration policies and rules of acceptance or rejection of refugees and the displaced are determined.  

Also importantly, once policies have been created how are they humanely and fairly implemented and maintained?  Most positively the work acknowledges the contributions made by ‘Others’.

The installation is not site specific.  Has no reference to it’s immediate location but uses the region as a back-drop to illustrate the ultimate goal in incorporating these desperate factors that ultimately there is a paradox that though seemingly different, we all share the same fears, loves and hopes and while not indigenous we blend in and are all uniquely part of a whole family

Eve Spiral, AILYOS Leysin Switzerland 2018

Eve Spiral is a continuum of work inspired by a personal muse, the Venus of Willendorf.  

 

This collection of 18 ascending figures is site specific and made for AILYOS Art and Nature project.  The Eves are press moulded, individually finished and have natural feathers to assist in their journey skywards. 

 

Words are powerful tools.  We all know the effect a positive or negative word has and how the energy of words influences our lives. 

Each Eve carries intentions of encouragement and affirmation. As a result, their positive messages create collective of good will.  

The viewer is invited to interact with these joyful creatures by  adding words/thoughts of support and good wishes thus magnifying the message and increasing the energy on the symbolic spiralling path to understanding and knowledge. 

The Eve Spiral is a vehicle for instructing and reminding us of the options we have to select positivity as a force for change and growth.