Created as part of the Wee Bit Off Centre Residency hosted by the Agnes Etherington Art Centre.
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Installation Statement
This installation is a result of Atrophied Objects, a sculptural workshop hosted by William Carroll + WBOC about group experimentation and using what we have.
Many educational institutions, political buildings, museums, art galleries, and prisons in use today have been built with a Romanesque Revival (or Norman/Lombard) style of architecture — imposing buildings with large towers, rounded arches held up by sturdy columns, sweeping staircases, polychromatic stonework, and decorative plaques are all hallmarks of this classic style. This style of building has also been used to exclude groups of people from these spaces, creating physical or psychological barriers that parallel the Roman attitude towards disabled individuals (those born disabled were to be put to death, while those who received theirs in battle revered).
During our week-long workshop, we intervened in the anteroom of Etherington House, where WBOC has taken up residence. We played with columns in arrangements that disrupted their usual load-bearing function. We replaced the ivy that commonly adorns institutional exteriors with mould, fungus, and lichens, thinking to how people with disabilities grow not with or around but through barriers to create space for ourselves.
This installation is an alternative entrance to an art institution. We welcome you to pass through into Wee Bit Off Centre.
An annotated rejection letter created while running a workshop on rejection.
An installation as part of the artists residency Wee Bit Off Centre.
