Big Arms
PERFORMANCE · 2014 · LOCK-UP CULTURAL CENTRE NEWCASTLE
A performance in the recreation yard of the former gaol now the Lock-Up Gallery, Newcastle.
This was part of a series of performances over three days at the Lock-Up in Newcastle, a former gaol used by the police. I occupied the former recreation area with a bench, three black placards, and some weights. I spent the day doing bicep curls and sit-ups. Each of these rep sets was recorded with chalk on large black-painted panels: red for the curls, white for the sit-ups; one placard per day. This represented the repetitive life in prison and the way that exercise becomes an end in itself where time stretches seemingly indefinitely. The resultant “drawings” become beautiful abstractions in themselves, transforming mindless toil into rhythmic filigree. The panels are now in the collection of Lake Macquarie City Gallery.
