Site Is Set 2016 saw a 9000 minute (6.25 days) durational radio broadcast in the Queen Victoria Market (Field Theory), one-on-one geo-political tarot readings from corporate foyers (Martyn Coutts), unusual art tours at the National Gallery of Victoria (Jess Olivieri) and multi-lingual presentations at the Alliance Française library (Nicola Gunn).
Site Is Set has enabled world class, site-based performance to flourish in Melbourne. Unfettered by physical infrastructure, corporate marketing agendas and stakeholder interests that are not always congruous with artistic aims, the artist collective Field Theory has proved there is a place for agile, artist-focused curation within the arts funding ecosystem. At a time of massive cuts to independent and experimental art funding Field Theory seemed able to win support for a fresh approach where artists allocated public funds to other artists directly. Their commissioning initiative Site Is Set has not only challenged and offered an alternative to how festival funding can be allocated, but also reimagined how artists can be supported to make urgent, challenging work beyond the constraints of traditional presentational venues.
Dr Robert Walton - Melbourne University Head of Theatre VCA
Field Theory | 9000 minutes
Nicola Gunn | The Interpreters
At the beginning of his presentation, a speaker made a joke through an interpreter and after a few seconds the whole room burst into laughter. He was pleased that finally an audience had appreciated his joke. At the end of the meeting he said to the interpreter, “You know, I’ve made this joke several times in lots of different countries, but usually no one laughs. You must be a very good interpreter. I wonder how you managed to translate it?” The interpreter replied, “I simply said: he has made a joke, please laugh.”
The confrontation of language underlies so many of the problems which we can pose concerning human beings. Performed in English, French, Auslan and Boon Wurrung, this is a work about the act of interpreting, about changing words into meaning and back again. Set against the backdrop of French Mansion, join Nicola and special guests to untangle and retangle language.
Alliance Française | 51 Grey St, St Kilda
Performed by | Nicola Gunn, Mehdi Khallouk, Fay Muir and Luke King.
Jess Olivieri| Death to The White Horse
Colonial perceptions, contemporary misreadings and fictional inventions will reconsider the grand frame of the art institution. Taking direction from a parade in the centre of South Africa and a play in the Netherlands, Death to the White Horse is the third in a trilogy of performances that explore the relationship between myth and history, particularly in relation to representations of white horses. Ride into a dark reframing of the NGV.
The NGV foyer | 180 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne, 11am and 3pm, 19 + 20 November 2016.
Lead Artist | Jess Olivieri
Artist | Nikki Haywood
Martyn Coutts | Shell Game
The Spratly Islands are a barren collection of rocks, shoals and reefs in the South China Sea. Historically, little attention has been paid to this uninhabited part of the world, but now several countries with overlapping territorial claims are waking up to their strategic importance.
The geographic ambiguity of these islands has already ensnared international shipping companies, fishermen, mango exports and the odd K-Pop star. It is now a possible geo-political flashpoint.
Shell Game is a personal model for divination into the many possible futures of the Spratly Islands. It provides safety and surety in an uncertain world, placing the user in the centre of the map.
A performance for a single person in a corporate foyer in Melbourne CBD.
Lead Artist | Martyn Coutts
Dramaturge | Jason Maling
Read about Site Is Set in The Age
