Spun dry...

Whatever happened to Ginny? Well, the tea-towels came down off the line and she's been busy investigating new opportunities for further cunning stunts.

Between sending off acquittal for Janet Holmes a Court NAVA grant - thanks a million - and investigating a stint with Art on the Move to travel Spin Cycle across country (Share the love, you know it) and tossing a hat in the ring for a few other 'possibles' Virginia has been diligently stitching together another chapter...

A wedding, a baby, a move and trips to the never-never with Awesome Arts have thus far kept Virginia's creative escapades at bay, however in light of her new experiences she may have some additional juice to inject into her next intimate public offering.

Postcards - possibly notes to self will be forthcoming. ..Stay tuned to a tree near you...or possibly quite far away from you...

love love love x

She Speaks

Outed at last, Virginia spoke to the masses crammed into the Bunbury Regiona Art Galleries exhibition space on August 1st to speak to her audience about the inner workings of her Cunning Stunt machinations.

Ginny does Abbey Rd

Toting our most precious possessions we boarded the galleries vessel for a morning of delight and solidarity among a collection of newly recruited Virginias. As one observer duly commented to a delighted Ms Cunningham; 'I'd be disappointed if I didn't have a little bit of Virginia in me'.

Helen and Jean Speak, Steam and Spray

Virginia spoke of her humble origins, her exhibition intentions and what the future may hold for a Virginia scattered across the state in all directions. From her humble regional roots she has grown in confidence and strength and plans to continue her Granny Guerrilla actions in the urban and rural landscape. In the Kimberley, Derby and Broome Dwellers may be in for the occasional humble domestic artistic fancy swinging modestly from the trees to announce her 'spreading of wings' into other regional areas.

Helen Shows how it is done in style

Audience members were delightfully generous in recounting personal stories aroused in response to the exhibition and the tea towels on show. Virginia was humbled by the beautiful anecdotes bravely shared in the space. Many women spoke of the traditions and generations of home-making handed down over the years. The teatowels - in their suffocating domesticity - struck a chord with many participants who responded to the intensity of the claustrophobic intimacy of the doemstic sphere re-created in the installation space.

All in all, between the squirt and hiss of the iron, Virginia managed to smooth out the wrinkles collected in her laundry basket with pride, nourished by the shared experience of those collected together on this most auspicious occasion.

Spun Dry

The Spin Cycle exhibition opening for Virginia Cunningham was a blast. Virginia was most humbled by the endearing rambles put forth by her dear friend and esteemed academic Prof. Ronald Crunkle who said many a wise word about 'wegional life' and the arts as well as a particular breed of Australianness.

 Prof. Crunkle toasts Virginias at Spin Cycle Opening

Virginia has instructed us to post some images here if you haven't yet managed to or can't get to the Bunbury Regional Art Galleries to see the show. One of the most incredible aspects of the installation is the distinctive aroma of the 3rd drawer down. Known to tea towel users the world over; that familiar faint smell of laundered linen mixed with fetid fat particles welded to the fibres of the fabric and emanating forth a most unusually familiar smell of housework. The smell of household groundhog day subltly permates the exhibition space as a result of the many donated teatowels rendered into artworks and strung from a criss-cross of clothesline throughout the space.

 Opening Legs

Another wonderful aspect to the installation is the intimacy it affords the audience. The criss-cross clothesline works to create a multitude of 'rooms' locking the viewer into a small and intimate space - literally four 'walls' of teatowels. One has to negotiate their way through the space by parting the teatowel 'curtains' to enter into the next space, and so on. Each teatowel 'room' is approximately 4 - 5 teatowels wide and 2 - 3 teatowels deep so it creates a lovely disruption to the stranger-in-the-gallery syndrome. One is immediately compelled to communicate with the person already occupying the space you have just slipped yourself into because the space is so intimate and cloistered. The only way you can find the rest of your party is to identify their feet or legs and negotiate the tea towels to arrive at their space. Beautiful. 

This installation challenged the traditional notion of the exhibiton opening as a social networking party - there was no way of seeing the whole at any one time as you found yourself completely immersed, people were absorbed and lost in the space, identifiable only by their legs or feet. There became a 'hide and seek' aspect as people would suddenly discover someone they knew in the adjoining tea towel corral.

The Entrance to the Installation

Indeed, the proximity and cloistered spaces claims a territory impossible to explain to anyone without firsthand experience - that of the suffocating entrapment of the house and neverending housework. The two rooms evoke a sense of claustrophobia as one attempts to navigate through, hoping to come across a larger space for a breath only to discover space after space of tea towel rooms almost the same as the last, yet with subtle differences - the teatowels themselves.

It is impossible to capture in stills - or even on film - the impact of Virginia's most awesome cunning stunt yet. It is an adventure to be experiencd first hand. Virginia has decided to travel the show, perhaps Perth for now - she is still 'in talks' with herself about this prospect at some stage in the near future.

 

 Tea Towel VideoWork on floor of second room (and avid audience)

ABC Southwest has been following Virginia's story and posted a video of the Virginia's at work in Hath's Mullalyup studio. This can be seen here if you are interested.

Still to come - Virginia's floor talk...stay tuned, ever faithful...

The Eyes have It

Purple Bra, Blue Stocking
(Ode to Breast Cancer Awareness)

Oh Capt Bunbury, how fair thou art!
Tis but a perfect improvement
O'er such a dis-male sight
Should you breach such sweet caress
by sudden shifting torn abreast
I'll mourn a million thousand deaths
That your feminine be wretched yet

In case you esteemed and accomplished poets out there were wondering - no, it is not any attempt to be anything other than a bunch of words. Despite a brief brush with English teaching, Ginny spouts sonnet-less verse so don't bother counting pentameters, lines or rhyming couplets lest you desire to frustrate yourself beyond all comprehension. Beauty is in the beholder of random free-verse.

Virginia does know a thing or two about a granny guerrilla cunning stunt - it is as much a performance in the installation as the finished result itself. She is quite brazen these days, flashing her wares to all and sundry in the main. Virginia is no shrinking violet, she has a story to share and there's some fun to be had in the margins.

In true Sherwood Forest-style Ginny adds a splash of domesticity to the streetscape. She assures us it's okay but something about the wanted poster style of it and rough and ready print tells us that maybe it's not really all right...

And still flies almost a year later, sewn to the tree (hanging to the left - the 'n' visible). Hanging tea towels out to weather seems to be a fitting way to savour anti-washing sentiments. How are you with your washing? Shame the clothesline at home isn't artwork for the gallery too - sometimes the washing can hang on it for weeks at a time before it is invited inside to be sorted, folded and stowed...home style installations for an audience of one? two? Perhaps more ephemeral art of the daily/weekly/monthly variety. Bit like the home cappuccino machine or the plasma TV in a home threatre - we can have our visual pleasures at home like 'the real thing' of the cinema... Now we can also have high art - ephemeral installation art at that - at home whenever we like. Just pop out back to gaze at the incredible wonder of the hills hoist. Luxury in our own back yards. How's the serenity?

Media Whore

It's official, Virginia will put it out anywhere anyhow. Check Ginny out on the ABC website (click on ABC) to see Sharon Kennedy's savvy snaps of Ginny's minions at work in the studio at Mullalyup. Also included is a meandering drone by Naomie about her inspiration for Spin Cycle. Listen carefully for in amongst the ambient sound is the occasional squirt of the ironing spray - lovely!

Also recent Cunning Stunt by Virginia (our resident Granny Guerrilla) delivered a purple sparkly bra to the Maidens of Bunbury (Rusty Sheridan's creations) in support of Breast Cancer awareness. Featured briefly on GWN news, the Maidens were treated to a modesty-makeover concealing her bare nipples with the mere suggestion of a sparkler in honour of purple bra day on Friday June 18, 2010.

As you can see - hard at work we measure up the Maidens for their modesty-enhancement makeover. A final floral embellishment was just the touch.

Slit Slot Slat

This slit is unzipped. Does this make it a slot? Virginia brings out the best and worst in us all by highlighting the hidden... A dirty old worn teatowel has been used and abused yet retains something of it's pastel pink purity making it seem vulnerable and slight, in need of protection and nurturing. Or should she be able to be dirty and pure at the same time? Is it a physicality that determines this? Tony Abbott says we must bring back the chastity belt for our fillettes. Are our boys not worthy of such attention to their developing sexuality?

this slit is zippered. You may not be able to read but the text adorned by floral buttons says 'cuisine'. Something keeps reappearing lately, a theme that suggests the humble teatowel may be occasionally gendered. Orifices of various types have been appearing in old and new teatowels alike suggesting that the orifice may have something to do with the domestic zones...the souvenir trade...or cultural positioning....could this be possible?

Tea Towel Makeover - 10 years Younger in 10 Days!!!!

Yes, it actually seems as though Ginny might be getting somewhere ('something's really happening Reg!' - Monty Python's Life of Brian) as the production cycle moves into full creative swing. Juices are flowing as the teatowels fly thick and fast, ever more brave and adventurous paving a new life, a new incarnation for the teatowel as you once though you knew her to be. She might wipe, clean, polish and rub - but she is also precious, occasionally broken, thin or layered by her experience - bearing her history on her sleeve (if she had a sleeve, Naomie thinks it would be a lacy red one).

D

DO NOT IRON

Printing is almost done (sighs of relief heaved all round, as you see, Virginia discovered the print process is far too anal and tight for our messy creativity, hence creative/painterly prints...). Virginia is now finding her true creative forte moving to the fore: collage, applique, patchwork, layering, assemblage, stitching, ripping and adorning anything that bears the remotest resemblance to a teatowel from a previous incarnation.

Layering begins in earnest as we each scrounge our studio hoardes for embellishments called for by a certain aura emmitted by each teatowel.  We have all found a strong preference for teatowels with a past life, especially stained and loved beyond recognition. The smell is most treasured by Jean who has cunning ideas about conjuring old Sunday roast smells from the kitchen to infuse the works.

Fresh talks emerge with each gathering about video possibilities. If you know a Virginia you may well be victim of her latest cunning stunt to secure your teatowel saga (or third drawer down philosophy as it may well be) on film for the exhibition. 15 minutes of fame awaits you...or your teatowels.

Helen has been working like a madwoman in the attic scratching at the yellowed wallpaper to finish her quota before she is seconded to a remote North West community school as artist in residence over May. And we, envious Ginny's, shivver away in the chilly south in time with the linglingling of our sewing machines attaching teatowels.

LingLingLingLingLin Ling ling ling...ling