The Arts Centre brings digital art to the Great Hall

The Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora is delighted to be hosting Personal Space, a collection of five new artist cinema works commissioned by CIRCUIT Artist Film and Video Aotearoa New Zealand in 2019.

The 30-minute loop shows contemporary artistic responses on the theme of home. The Arts Centre Chief Executive, Philip Aldridge says the new digital works are surprisingly appropriate in the grand heritage space. “People often slip into the Great Hall for a few moments of reflection, and these works themselves invite reflection,” says Philip.

Some of the imagery is pointed, such as orange juice-soaked underpants and the line “If I die don’t worry about the porn, it’s tasteful... just delete my Soundcloud.”

“We are a centre for the arts, and the arts can - and should - be unsettling, confronting, even shocking, as well as soothing,” says Philip. “The Arts Centre enables the people of Christchurch to engage with a wide range of creative expression.”

Melbourne-based curator Serena Bentley asked five artists to respond to questions about ‘home’:  What do we call ‘home’? What are our shared foundations and values? When you think about yours what does it look like, and what will it look like in the future? What does home mean to you?

The artists are Janet Lilo, Tanu Gago, Natasha Matila-Smith, Campbell Patterson (New Zealand), and Atong Atem (Australia). The work premiered in Wellington last year; this is its first showing in the South Island.

Personal Space runs every day in the Great Hall, at The Arts Centre Toi Matatiki Toi Ora.

10am to 5pm, until 3 March.

Entry is free.

Image Credits:

1. Still from Untitled (2019) a video by Campbell Patterson. Commissioned by CIRCUIT Artist Film and Video Aotearoa New Zealand with the support of Creative New Zealand.

2. Still from If I die, please delete my Soundcloud (2019) a video by Natasha Matila-Smith. Commissioned by CIRCUIT Artist Film and Video Aotearoa New Zealand with the support of Creative New Zealand