"'Through my repeated attempts to repair the window, I have developed pneumonia' by Robert Hood and Simon Lawrence"
2003-01-15 until 2003-02-08
Physics Room
Christchurch, , NZ New Zealand (Aotearoa)

Recent graduates of Ilam School of Fine Arts, both Hood and Lawrence are involved in the Christchurch arts community and have been developing strong individual and collaborative practices. Working together on previous projects, the pair have produced large temporary sculptures carefully constructed from cardboard and packing tape with reference to both the hi-tech languages of virtual worlds and the amateur model-maker.

Their Physics Room project is an extension of the artists' collaborative practice and interest in narrative, with the addition of computer aided video pieces and further functional sculptural elements exploring the neurosis of the modern-day office worker.

Creating a cliché office environment within the gallery, Hood and Lawrence have significantly altered the gallery architecture and thereby the viewers expectations and experience of the space. Giving just enough detail to hint at a narrative and an implied yet absent protagonist, this installation allows the viewer's imagination to fill in the gaps as though reading a 'pick a path' novel. Triggering our preconceived notions of office hierarchy and social status, the artists explore workplace paranoia and anxious boredom. Yet through an accompanying text piece and a movie looped on the desktop monitor, there is also a hint of escapism and of life beyond the office.

Related Links:

Indepth Arts Resources for New Zealand

Other Important Exhibitions in New Zealand