Sydney’s Underbelly

CarriageWorks, at the old Eveleigh Rail Yards, is the perfect venue for installation pieces. It provides a perfect backdrop that is full of character, yet unobtrusive. It complements installation pieces, but avoids overshadowing them.

It is for this reason that CarriageWorks was a fantastic space to host the Underbelly 2008 Public Arts Lab and Festival. It showcased 40 works from over 250 artists. According to the Underbelly production team, the festival came together on “a whole lotta love and a shoestring”. It shows. The love, that is.

In fact the works shown by Mekanarky studios were impressive in size and scope. Dylan McEvan’s Ants On Mercedes deserves a special mention. Technically and aesthetically brilliant – it is a piece that elicited gasps from those who saw it.

However, the studio’s selection of mixed media on canvas works, particularly those displayed near large installation pieces like Terra Incognito, were overshadowed whilst the stencils and screen prints on the second level were positioned poorly and seen by few. This was partly to do with the poor layout, but mainly because Underbelly hasn’t decided what type of art festival it is. The organisers are striving to make it an all-inclusive event, which is noble, but CarriageWorks is best suited to installation pieces and performance art. If canvas or print pieces are to be included in an annual Underbelly festival, they need to be located in a prime position to ensure they are not eclipsed by larger, more imposing works.

One piece that utilised the height and structure of CarriageWorks was The Hanging Garden And Other Tales, made up of pot plants and their stories that were on loan from local residents. The installation by artists Makeshift and Nobody was site specific and – and it shows. Of all the pieces, this one made the best use of its surroundings.

The standout pieces were the Pork Bus and Remixing History. The Pork Bus challenged people to reconsider their preconceptions, their ideas of what art is, and their own social attitudes. Remixing History was interactive, exciting and fun. The occasional over-eager audience member could be annoying, but it was a great concept and brilliantly executed.

Photo: Jack Carnegie