The Captivation Between Here and There

Moving Cities: works by Australian artists in Berlin 2000-1
Australian Embassy Berlin to coincide with the launch of the Sydney Olympics

In 2000, I created a triptych video work—The Captivation Between Here and There—for ‘Moving Cities: works by Australian artists in Berlin’ curated by Brigitta Olubas and Alison Kubler which opened on September 15 at the Australian Embassy in Berlin to coincide with the launch of the Olympics. The work of the four exhibitors, Ian Howard, Donna Marcus, Milan Milojevic and myself, dealt with the theme of contemporary urban life shared across different cultures, with a particular focus on the underlying similarities between the urban cultures of Australia and Germany. The exhibition also toured to Nanyang Technological University Singapore.

The Captivation Between Here and There focuses on one woman in Brisbane and another woman in Berlin across three monitors. The left and right monitor features each woman. The two women both sufferers of anxiety disorders, are fearful of travelling on public transport, specifically trains. Fleeting glances out of the window of the two cities and various people on the train are interspersed throughout the interview. This approach was intended to investigate these women’s fears of public space specifically public transport (mobility) and their approach to safety, risk, protection through avoidance. The interviews were conducted with the women in their domestic spaces and focused on the women’s fears and avoidance in relation to issues of mobility and containment.  The central monitor between the two interviews of the two women, is a train tunnel/colon image. At the time of filming, the Berlin based woman is still suffering greatly from her anxiety, while the woman based in Brisbane had overcome her problem and was then helping others overcome the disorder.  The journey on the train runs parallel to the concept of the journey of healing.  One is caught between two states, well and unwell, Brisbane and Berlin, here and there etc.

This work focuses on my concerns regarding women’s health issues, notions of empowerment and disempowerment of women, and the position of women in public space.