Boat Race

Boat Race was commissioned as part of the contour 556 festival, with funding from artsACT. The work comprised of two sculptures exhibited in a gallery, and three subsequent performances with these objects. In the piece, A Boat Race, two dark objects face one another in the gallery. One is a large boat with a timber frame stretched over with navy oilskin. The boat is standing upright on the transom, with two small wheels at the bottom as if to wheel it around in this position. Attached to the inside of the boat is an oilskin ladies suit, empty and open, implying the figure that has just taken it off. Opposite the boat is a coat rack in timber and oilskin holding a second empty suit. The arms of the jacket have two long wooden oars running down them. These two face each other as in a staring competition, the empty suits mirrored in the sculptures. There is no space for the pieces to combine as a boat and oar are designed. The two suits exist separately, ready for action in a race that can only take place on land. There is a journey that could be taken by these objects, or an aim that could be achieved, but the absent figures are caught in opposition. These sculptures were then used in a performance piece where four women enact a race along the edge of a lake. Two performers with flags and whistles start and finish the race, while the wearers of the boat and oars run along the edge of the lake, each dragging a component of the boat. The race runs in two directions, getting nowhere and finishing again at the start.