Other Body Knowledge: Sophie Cassar, Lara Chamas, Fayen d’Evie, Sam Petersen, Jane Trengove
Olga Bennett__In the Jackson Bella Room at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), large blue undulating shapes are positioned—one on the floor, the second hanging from the ceiling above. Instead of remaining a politely distanced beholder, you are invited to touch the shapes and move, following the waves of their smooth plasticky surface. The objects are made in the vivid bright blue of the artist Fayen d’Evie’s mobility cane. Their outlines trace the movements of the cane during d’Evie’s performance of a certain dance meant for two, taught to her—remotely—by interstate collaborators Holly Craig and Riana Head-Toussaint, their collaboration reshaped by pandemic orders that limited travel for most of 2020. While in the room, you can hear the artist rehearse the dance in the bush on Jaara Country near her home (sounds of feet on the ground, birdsong), and also her voice visually describing it. Two screens positioned in the corner of the room display footage captured by GoPro attached to d’Evie’s body and edited ‘with colourful, hallucinatory effects that reflect her visual experience.’ Through touch, movement, sound and visual effects, you are invited to get to know the artist’s experience of her surroundings and to encounter a different embodiment.
