Temporary Democracies

TD_Kate Mitchell’s Psychic Shop_edMarking the culmination of a three-year live art program, Campbelltown Art Centre’s Temporary Democracies will take residence in Airds with new installations and executions for the third time in October 2014.

Launched in 2012, Temporary Democracies marks the South West Sydney centre’s focus to develop and deliver a high quality arts program that engages the community at all levels, drawing on the experiences of local residence impacted by the renewal of the Airds Bradbury social housing area near Campbelltown.

Temporary Democracies is a unique live art experience in the community of Airds, South West Sydney,” says Director of Campbelltown Arts Centre, Michael Dagostino.

“This project was established to explore and highlight the stories and experiences of residents in Airds going through great change. Each artist as part of Temporary Democracies offers a different experience to audiences, focusing on a multitude of ideas, working across interdisciplinary and site specific practices. I encourage everyone to come down on either Saturday to experience a truly moving project and gain insight into Airds as a community.”

Set within the Airds Bradbury social housing site, from outdoor spaces with temporary installations, Temporary Democracies works in conjunction with the architectural strategy to improve the area, documenting and reflecting the urban realities of these communities in transition, bringing together 9 emerging and established artists from NSW, ACT, QLD and New Zealand in a series of on-site artist residencies, to research, develop and present artist-lead, site-based interdisciplinary projects.

Newly developed installation work, Skyball from New Zealand artist David Cross for example, invites teams of participants formed by the local Airds communities and others to play a new sport wearing inflatable costumes.

Indigenous artist and photographer Bindi Cole’s work Pop up Portraits is a temporary photography studio set in a shopfront at Airds Shopping Mall, offering locals still living at Airds the opportunity to have their photograph taken for free, utilising the final product as both a gift to the audience member and an installation within the shopfront.

Curated by Australian artist Paul Gazzola, the program will also feature artists Lachlan Anthony & Benjamin Forster, Darren Bell, Rebecca Conroy, Robert Guth, Bennett Miller and Kate Mitchell, placing emphasis on creating and maintaining strong community ties, encouraging community cohesion and offering a means of deep personal engagement.

From mobile lighting installations, to large-scale video projection, a pop-top caravan re-modelled as a mobile communal-cooking hearth and sculptures, Temporary Democracies will provide local residents with a celebration of, and farewell to their local community.

Many of the residents that will be displaced by the renewal of Airds Bradbury social housing area are second and third generation occupants with strong ties to the site. Through artist-lead participation, dialogue and interaction, Temporary Democracies aims to explore the social contexts and consequences of urban renewal while calling on local residents and communities to do so.

A regular timetable of buses from Campbelltown train station to the project site in Airds will be provided to ensure easy access with the wide variation in installations – from sporting to food and art – giving a taste of something for everyone.

Temporary Democracies runs 3 – 11 October 2014. For more information, visit: www.temporarydemocracies.com for details.

Image: Kate Mitchell’s Psychic Shop