SAN DIEGO, CA.- On February 22, 2009, the
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego will open Rising Tide: Film and Video Works from the MCA Collection, Sydney at its downtown Jacobs Building location. The exhibition--drawn from the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney--will feature film and video installations by 13 internationally recognized contemporary Australian video artists and collectives.
On view through June 21, 2009, Rising Tide represents the second of two significant collection exhibition exchanges between the MCA, Sydney and MCASD (works by West Coast artists from MCASD's collection were exhibited at MCA, Sydney in the spring of 2008). Crossing countries, collections, and art forms, these exhibitions consider the significance of location and the role of art museums in nurturing their creative communities through research, display, and acquisition. Rising Tide and its partner project introduce Australian and American audiences--many for the first time--to some of the central concerns and ideas shaping contemporary art from both regions.
From well-established artists such as David Noonan, Patricia Piccinini, and Susan Norrie to emerging talent including Jess MacNeil, Todd McMillan, and Kate Murphy, Rising Tide encompasses a wide range of themes and modes of presentation. Several of the artists explore issues surrounding identity, social expectations, and community. Leading Australian Aboriginal artist Destiny Deacon and collaborator Virginia Fraser tackle assumptions made about skin color, while Kate Murphy's five-channel installation captures the emotion of family relationships, religion, and changing social roles. Anne Kay and Jane Polkinghorne's Artist Archive brings attention to a cross-section of Sydney's art world from the artists' perspective, using interviews to give a voice to 100 artists in the city.
Urban landscapes play an important role in many of the works, from Shaun Gladwell's poetic intervention with Sydney's public transit system to The Kingpins' humorously scathing critique of the pervasiveness of global chain stores. Jess MacNeil presents an altered view of Australia's best-known cultural icon, removing the images of visitors traversing the steps of the Sydney Opera House to leave ghost-like shadows that focus our attention on often overlooked details and the passing of time.
Human interaction with nature is another theme that emerges from the exhibition. Todd McMillan documents a 12-hour performance on the cliffs overlooking the ocean, in a physical reenactment of Casper David Friedrich's quintessential romantic painting Monk by the Sea, while Tony Schwensen's videos document performances prompted by actual and often absurd political and environmental propositions. Using owls as a recurring motif, David Noonan focuses his Super-8 footage on ambiguous cultural understandings of the creature's symbolism. Patricia Piccinini's installation blurs the boundaries of natural and artificial worlds and explores what is "natural" in a digital age. A sense of isolation and alienation loosely connects these works.
The scale of the works ranges from single-channel video, to multi-projection installations, to architectural interventions such as Daniel von Sturmer's floor-based, multi-screen installation that plays with space, scale, and orientation.
Curated by Dr. Stephanie Hanor, Senior Curator, MCASD, and Rachel Kent, Senior Curator, MCA, Sydney, Rising Tide is a rich and informative display by artists whose practices offer valuable insights into the diversity of working methods and contemporary themes being explored through moving images. The exhibition gives Southern California audiences direct access to a unique collection that is as locally responsive as it is globally pertinent.
