reflex
Geoffrey Farquhar-Still, Ella Barclay, Chloe Bussenschutt, Sarah Firth, Nicci Haynes, Daniel Lorrimer, Marina Neilson, Sean O’Connell, Heike Qualitz, Matthew Smith & Alan Rose.
Reflex 2: A Show of Mechanical Poetry, an interactive exhibition of mechanical oddities displayed in an “absurd, delightful and
slightly sinister manner” A quirky mix of Jules Verne-meets-Myth Busters, Reflex is an exhibition that actively explores both modern science and and mechanical poetry.
Bringing together 11 artists and machine makers from around Australia, Reflex is an opportunity to engage with the poetic possibilities of machines and their hand cranked, 12-volt, gravity-activated personalities. Some machines spin at the turn of a handle or the flick of a switch, revealing their nature with a cacophony of sound and movement. Others will rise and fall gently only to rise once more while others will crash, springing back to life at the flick of a switch.
“To look with the eyes is one thing, to feel with the hands, another thing entirely. Objects have form, color and scale but they also have weight, resistance and sound. The point of the exhibition is to bring together artists to create machines which serve no purpose other than to bend the mind into new shapes and to walk away filled with wonder at their brilliance,” says Farquhar-Still.
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- Princess & Henry, Gaffa Gallery 2010
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- Princess & Henry, M16 Artspace 2009
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- Princess & Henry (detail)
Princess & Henry is a somewhat sinister installation made from preloved hairdryers (of named models).
each element includes a mechanism driven by a slow microwave motor.
one slowly and awkwardly turns a wig within its innards, the other operates a pincer like instrument reaching outwards longingly.
wandering through the opening of Reflex 2 – a show of mechanical poetry at Gaffa Gallery, Sydney, August 2010
