EXHIBITION : Litmus Research Initiative

MASSEY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF FINE ARTS

Litmus Research Initiative

Artist speaks from beyond the Grave

Notorious Auckland artist Dane Mitchell has brought Rita Angus back from the dead. Hear for the first time the communion between a reputable clairvoyant and Angus recently recorded by Mitchell in the deceased artists old Thorndon residence.

The potential paranormal scope and history of the Rita Angus Cottage in Thorndon and the Old museum Building (Massey University) forms the basis of a new body of work by Dane Mitchell as the 2006 Massey University/Rita Angus Visual Artist-in-Residence recipient.

Paranormal response is a growing pre-occupation of our times, from the television series “Sensing Murder” to the recent acknowledgement by the New Zealand Police force of the assistance of a local clairvoyant in the tracking of a missing pensioner in Palmerston North, the currency of such methods of information gathering are both topical and contestable. Playfully mixing such paranormal interpretations with museological affect, Mitchell’s research takes audio recordings from a Wellington-based psychic’s readings of the Old museum Building and the Rita Angus Cottage and grounds as a starting point to tactfully explore both personal and institutional histories.

Sited aptly in the old Museum building and incorporating a variety of media including sound recordings, video, photography and rubbings on paper, Thresholds presents diverse and involved research into a sense of “presence”, time and display. For those prepared to consider the mystical, through to perhaps the more skeptical among us, Mitchell’s work moves reliably from a considered critical enquiry to at times quite blithe takes on the ways of accessing senses of space and history.

As part of his Residency, Mitchell will give a public presentation on Thresholds on Wednesday August 16 at 5.30 p.m., 10A02 Lecture Theater, Old Museum Building, Massey University, via Buckle street. As well as a discussion of the project, this presentation will feature a live preview of material to be included in Mitchell’s final installation.

Massey University’s School of Fine Arts began its artist-in-residence programme in 2002. Working in tandem with the Thorndon Trust, caretakers of the Rita Angus Cottage, Massey has established an opportunity for significant visual arts practitioners, both here and overseas, to develop a particular body of work in situ in Wellington. The residency is research focused with the aim of enabling artists to concentrate on developing a particular strand of their practice.

The residency is now entering its fifth year. In that time it has hosted artists from Germany (Thomas Bayrle), England (Rachel Chapman) and New Zealand (Ronnie van Hout, David Clegg, Monique Redmond).

Please join the artist and the School of Fine Arts for the opening celebration of Thresholds on Friday August the 18th at 5.30 p.m. in the main entrance foyer, Old Museum Building, Massey University (via Buckle St.).

Thresholds is open for viewing from August 21 – September 1 (Mon – Fri, 12 noon – 5 p.m.) and is located at the Litmus Research Initiative, 10Bmezz10, via the main entrance foyer of the Old Museum Building, Massey University (via Buckle St.).