Headbox
2004, Installation of objects and video works
‘Rosa and Collar Model‘, 14mins
‘Hands Through Screen Model’, 12mins, 55secs
‘Woman Behind Screen Model’, 13mins, 8secs
Headbox is an installation of objects and video work. The initial focus of the research was Rosa Kuleshova, a young woman whose remarkable ability to read with her fingertips made her the subject of intense scientific observation in Russia in the 1960’s. The work demonstrates the artist’s interest in the contraptions and devices used by the scientists to prevent Rosa from using her eyes in the experiments. Blacked out goggles covered her eyes, large paper collars were placed around her neck, and screens with holes for her hands to pass through were all used to ensure that it was indeed Rosa’s fingers that were doing the ‘seeing’. Objects and imagery that echo these experiments have been created. The scientific research has been reinterpreted though a series of videos. Various components of the installation invite the audience to enter. Boxes on the wall require the viewer to insert their own head. Handles and steps assist this act. The boxes contain 3D images and sound. The viewer temporarily becomes part of the form, to be viewed both as disjointed person and part of the object.
Headbox
Exhibitions and Screenings
2005 ‘EV+A 2005’ – Limerick City Gallery of Art, Limerick. Curated by Dan Cameron.
2004 ‘Headbox’ – Solo Show, Temple Bar Gallery, Belfast.
Awards
2005 Award Winner at EV+A 2005, Curator – Dan Cameron, New Museum, New York.
