Dissonance through Art and Poetry
new show opening in February 2022
Mounted is excited to announce our third collaborative arts project for visual artists and writers. The project is based around the idea of dissonance and involves artists responding to poems on the theme.
An exhibition of the art and poetry will be on show at Mounted in February 2022. Keep an eye out on the website and socials for more details.
In strict terms, the word dissonance is usually referred to in a musical context, as a lack of harmony among musical notes. However, for the purposes of this project, we widen out the idea, allowing the concept to be contextualized into a much broader canvas of possibilities.
Dissonance is often experienced when we detect that something is not as we think it should be. A lack of harmony or agreement between things. Modernist painter Vasily Kandinsky reveled in this feeling, seeing it as a creative force.
‘Clashing discords, loss of equilibrium, ‘principles’ overthrown, unexpected drumbeats, great questionings, apparently purposeless strivings, stress and longing […] This is our harmony.’—Vasily Kandinsky1
Dissonance, in whatever form can have an unsettling affect upon us—disrupting our desire for the peaceful integration of our life experiences with our cognitive belief systems. Social psychology researcher Leon Festinger pioneered the area of Cognitive Dissonance in his 1957 book, A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. The theory says that humans strive for internal psychological consistency—we want our beliefs to accord with our actions. When we sense there is dissonance, we strive to resolve it and reduce the attendant feeling of discomfort, often by ignoring conflicting information or trying to justify our behavior.
Mounted’s Vicki Benn has written a blog on the theme of Dissonance. It is well worth a read. You can find it here.
New Exhibition Opens at Mounted
Reclamation: Exploring Memory
The French Philosopher, Gilles Deleuze said that “Memory is a past present, it brings the past into the present. The past and present are mingled: the past unfolding, the present creating and inventing”
Memory, both personal and collective, is fundamental to a knowledge and understanding of both an individual life, and more broadly, the collective historical and cultural impulses of any society.
In this project, artists are participating in a process of reclaiming memory, exploring its diverse expressions and nature by bringing it into the present moment, giving it a physical form through art, a presence that can be examined, shared and reflected upon.
NEWS
Mounted hosts 2-day workshop by Artist Jane Lennon.
Blue Mountains based artist Jane Lennon held a 2-day workshop at Mounted ARI. The workshop introduced participants to her unique art practice that she has developed over the past 3 decades. Lennon has evolved a process of creating sculptural forms made from recycled paper. A strong environmental ethos underpins her work. She collects used paper from a variety of sources then pulps it to create the core material for her practice. This results in the creation of beautiful objects from the otherwise unremarkable, discarded refuse of modern life. Lennon works within the long tradition of Papier Mache art, but she has developed her own specific technique for working with the material, honed over years of experimentation.
In the workshop Jane led participants through the process of creating a simple functional bowl as a starting point to explore the materiality of the paper pulp. From there we were encouraged to create a sculptural work using a variety of techniques that helped to add complexity and depth to the concept each of us wanted to explore. Jane’s extensive experience and familiarity with her practice ensured we were all well supported and had a lot fun. The paper pulp is applied to a substrate to build the final form. There is a deeply satisfying physicality to the material. It is very forgiving substance that can be worked and re-worked over and over again.
Jane has kindly offered to do another workshop at Mounted later in 2021. If you think you might be interested in participating contact us and we can provide you with further details.
Mounted ARI
0434973960
Oz Arts article about the Viewer Is Present Exhibition
Thanks to Oz Arts Magazine and editor Carolynne Skinner for this great article that is published now in the latest edition.
New Project at Mounted
The Viewer is Present
Exploring the art of seeing, listening and engaging.
We are back! On Sundays in October and November, starting on October 4th, Mounted will open its doors again with a new project titled, ‘The Viewer is Present’ curated by Julie Parkin in collaboration with the Mounted team.
-Mounted is inviting people to book in for a session at the Gallery to engage slowly with and respond to, just one or two artworks and one piece of short fiction. Inspired by Justin Paton’s book, How to Look at a Painting and the pandemic isolation, The Viewer is Present , aims to provide people with an opportunity to spend time engaging with art in a deeper way. As Paton says in his book,
‘.... painting is a medium that has to shout to be heard.’ This can also apply to any form of static art, be it painting, drawing, sculpture or writing. As Paton reports, the average viewer spends between eight and thirty seconds looking at an art work. To challenge that statistic, Mounted is inviting you to book in one Sunday for an hour, by yourself or with a partner or friend. At the Gallery you will be provided with an experience designed to allow you to engage with the work in a deeper and more focused way. You will be encouraged to respond to what you have experienced with some tips designed to lead you into the work. Afterwards join us for a cuppa and a chat. For more information look under the Present Exhibitions page on the website and register to secure a place on the Sunday and time of your choice.
Jenny Denny has released a track from her first solo EP. The artwork was produced in collaboration with Julie Parkin.
Jenny Denny is the guest music curator for Mounted. She will curate the music program for the 2021 Memory project. Her 5 track EP, ‘Sad Songs from a Happy Life’ is an isolation project, recorded and produced in Jenny’s home studio in the Inner West with the help of musician and partner Liam Denny. Both Jenny and Liam are part of ‘Heirs’ Indie Rock group. Julie has created a series of images and a stop motion animation to accompany tracks from the album. A debut single from the 5 track EP has just been released. Titled, ‘The Other Side', it is a song about the need to maintain hope during these challenging times. When the full EP is released later this month it will be downloadable complete with a colouring-in lyric booklet. Check it out at JennyDennyMusic
Blogging Around
Read the first blog from Mark Denny about plans for Mounted ARI in 2021. In upcoming blogs we will review exhibitions, include short pieces of creative writing, artist profiles and interviews.
TESTIMONIALS
Creative Spaces Project
Check out Instagram and Facebook where we have invited creative arts practitioners from our upcoming shows to share an image of their studios and work spaces.
This is the studio of sculptor Andrew Jakeman.