Ms Tanya Court

Invited artists were asked to select a site within the confines of the river bank between University footbridge and the Morphett Street Bridge

So the site was given and the response, as landscape architects and artists was to respond to the site itself. The Torrens Lake and banks are highly modified landscapes. A weir at one end converts the previous ephemeral river in to a lake with the banks also highly modified over the years. An early decision was discussed to work on both sides of the banks. On visiting the sites several locations were identified as having this potential. The site was eventually chosen for its high visibility and variety of landscape elements including undulations, retaining wall, trees and paths. It provided multiple viewpoints including picturesque views of the bridge in the background in contrast to the views along the path and also looking down and across the river.

Packing worked directly with the banks of the Torrens River, inscribing a line from one bank to another, creating an illusion of continuity across the river. The felt starts at the historic Police Box and “rolls” into the lake and emerges out the other side. Like a line on a map reconstructed in the landscape.

This geometric element draws attention to the existing landscape including typography and other more temporal characteristic including light and shadows.

While the interaction of the public was anticipated an unexpected aspect was the interaction of aboriginal people, particularly during installation but also for the duration of the installation. During the installation a group of people nearby asking questions about the work and more generally, telling us about their lives (I was rock star) etc. Later on during the installation three children returning from their adventures, immediately engaged with the work, rolling down the hill along the felt.

Interactions between strangers in public spaces are often limited but during the installation of Packing we had several people came up and asking what we were doing including the group of aboriginal people and the staff of the Popeye ferries (who claimed they would act as informal guides of the work) When they could people would walk around the felt but when this was no longer possible would ask permission to cross!

Packing used furniture removalists felt. 3 x 25 m (L) x 1.8m (W) rolls. The material includes recycled milk bottles. Packing was attached down to the earth with pins typically used for geotextile weed mats.

Packing references Michael Heizer’s earthwork Double Negative 1969-70 (Mormon Mesa, Overton, Nevada). We appreciate Heizer’s concerns including drawing attention to the context, ambiguity and the expressive potential of simple materials. While Double Negative created a void, Packing inscribes a line. But like Double Negative it is the relations with the site that are the real concern. Other so called land artists have also been interested in inscribing lines on the landscape including Robert Smithson, Richard Serra and Carl Andre.

Are there also references as diverse as Joseph Beuys use of felt and even ninja knitting’s textiles in public spaces? Is the work a send up of both Beuys’s earnestness and the knitting’s banality? Other associations may be the felt blankets given to aboriginal homeless and Adelaide gaol prisoners. It is also a send up of the ARI’s name, “FELTspace”. We aimed that the scale of the work suits the scale of the site.

Packing was a temporary installation as part of the Felt Natural exhibition official running to two days of the weekend in November. Packing was left installed till the following Wednesday when Adelaide City Council requested that it was removed. This was done and we were not surprised but delighted that Packing remained inscribed for a few more days as a yellowed strip of lawn. All evidence is now gone.
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Record created at source: 3 February 2016