1. Esther Stewart
A NEXT WAVE FESTIVAL 2012 PROJECT
19 → 29 MAY
19 → 29 MAY
↑ Previous Work
'Foldout'
Esther Stewart will reactivate a corner of QV with a work that encourages people to interact with the site and each other. Blurring the line between form and function, 'Foldout' will be a semi permanent feature within the QV complex.
See Esther's creative process on the pinboard.
Esther Stewart will reactivate a corner of QV with a work that encourages people to interact with the site and each other. Blurring the line between form and function, 'Foldout' will be a semi permanent feature within the QV complex.
See Esther's creative process on the pinboard.
2. Artist Statement
'Foldout' is a project aimed at activating Melbourne’s less used spaces, while feeding into the already vibrant laneway culture. Developed with the intention of engaging the community in an exchange about art in public spaces, this alternative seating project will offer places for the general public to relax and engage with each other and the city environment. This project focuses on less used spaces with the intension of highlighting the potential for growth and engagement within the City of Melbourne.
'Foldout' is a series of folding seats clustered together in different formations that respond to the locations architecture. There will be five seats at the QV (Queen Victoria Melbourne) site near the entrance located a on the corner of Swanston and Lonsdale Street. The seats will be mounted onto a large mural. The mural will camouflage the site and seats. This project aims to explore the boundaries of perspective through the use of large colourful geometric patterns.
This project is a merging between art, design and architecture. It is both practical and aesthetic. It offers flexibility and plurality to our urban environments; by using this optimistic solution of multi-purpose environments, cultural exchange, through conversation, is facilitated. This project aims to encourage new ways of thinking about the future of Melbourne’s urban infrastructure and its endless possibilities. As Melbourne’s population grows the once over looked spaces can offer new potential for recreational areas. These compactable seats allow for the sites to maintain their original function while inviting exploration into the potential of the site.
Each seat is an individual work, they can be viewed separately or in a group. In their different state of being they behave as different objects. While they are interactive seats they are also abstract geometric forms. They clad the walls of their site changing the visual landscape they inhabit. Their forms are both mysterious and familiar. Both sculptural and painterly. The site becomes a space in which the viewer can create their own atmosphere. The importance of the interactive objects is typified by the desire to perpetuate the notion of art and its function as inquisitive. By creating an environment for sound and reasonable development of the way we socialise and interact in public space I hope that these seats inspire and provoke thought about the spaces we move through. My flat pack wall hangings challenge the discrepancy between appearance and reality. I am interested in the way an artwork activates a space and alters the way in which we inhabit it.
'Foldout' is a series of folding seats clustered together in different formations that respond to the locations architecture. There will be five seats at the QV (Queen Victoria Melbourne) site near the entrance located a on the corner of Swanston and Lonsdale Street. The seats will be mounted onto a large mural. The mural will camouflage the site and seats. This project aims to explore the boundaries of perspective through the use of large colourful geometric patterns.
This project is a merging between art, design and architecture. It is both practical and aesthetic. It offers flexibility and plurality to our urban environments; by using this optimistic solution of multi-purpose environments, cultural exchange, through conversation, is facilitated. This project aims to encourage new ways of thinking about the future of Melbourne’s urban infrastructure and its endless possibilities. As Melbourne’s population grows the once over looked spaces can offer new potential for recreational areas. These compactable seats allow for the sites to maintain their original function while inviting exploration into the potential of the site.
Each seat is an individual work, they can be viewed separately or in a group. In their different state of being they behave as different objects. While they are interactive seats they are also abstract geometric forms. They clad the walls of their site changing the visual landscape they inhabit. Their forms are both mysterious and familiar. Both sculptural and painterly. The site becomes a space in which the viewer can create their own atmosphere. The importance of the interactive objects is typified by the desire to perpetuate the notion of art and its function as inquisitive. By creating an environment for sound and reasonable development of the way we socialise and interact in public space I hope that these seats inspire and provoke thought about the spaces we move through. My flat pack wall hangings challenge the discrepancy between appearance and reality. I am interested in the way an artwork activates a space and alters the way in which we inhabit it.
3. Bio
Esther Stewart’s practice is based on an exploration of the constructed environments in which we live. Her body of work, which she terms Portable Compactable, occupies a space between the functional and the purely aesthetic object.
Esther has exhibited in several artist run initiatives, including Blindside, Platform Contemporary Art Space, Rearview and TCB. In 2010 Esther was included in Fresh 2010 at Craft Victoria, an exhibition and award that explored new parameters of contemporary craft and design.
Esther completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts, with First Class Honours in 2010, majoring in Sculpture and Spatial Practice.
Esther has exhibited in several artist run initiatives, including Blindside, Platform Contemporary Art Space, Rearview and TCB. In 2010 Esther was included in Fresh 2010 at Craft Victoria, an exhibition and award that explored new parameters of contemporary craft and design.
Esther completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts, with First Class Honours in 2010, majoring in Sculpture and Spatial Practice.
