Newsletter #25 / November 15th
Rebecca Cunningham x FORA/squared
Come, hold our hand, as we walk into the festive season together.
One of the greatest tragedies of the modern age is how abysmal the Myer Christmas windows have become; once products of mystery and displayers of magic and intrigue, these squares of glass are now de-mattified catalogues of purchase. To be sure, they were always that, but it need not be so on the nose.
How lucky we are, then, to have our own window over which we might exercise some control. Occupying the FORA window for the duration of the high summer season will be Rebecca Cunningham’s Protagonist (2021), a neon scream of a quiet dream. Please join us at 6 pm/25th November/ 75 Vulture St for celebratory drinks with the artist.
A long-time arts worker and practitioner in varying disciplines, Cunningham’s observations of the human and non-human world culminate in thoughtful productions that celebrate movement, line, and environmental intertextuality. Protagonist is a continuation of her explorations of the human figure within the quieter moments of life. Heavy with observational onus, Protagonist is an invitation to read the body as text, and craft personal extrapolations from its form.
Further information on Cunningham’s work can be found at
instagram.com/rebeccacunninghamart
instagram.com/life_drawing_sessions/
Protagonist will be hung in the FORA window until mid-January.
As is customary (and we do love customs), this newsletter serves as antechamber to next week’s launch, detailing the recent attentions of Cunningham’s focus. Find below a collation of reference material that informs her practice, as well as recent productions created in her Cedar Creek studio. May these serve as quiet introductions to Cunningham’s approach, as well as general points of new and known information.
You can find Cunningham’s favourite records here, in the FORA x Rebecca Cunningham playlist
—or rather, books. The last five (5) Cunningham has read.
The Alchemist / Paulo Coehlo (1988)
Tracks / Robyn Davidson (1980)
Reckless Daughter: A portrait of Joni Mitchell / David Yaffe (2017)
The Passing of the Aborigines / Daisy Bates (1938)
Just Kids / Patti Smith (2010)
Twenty Feet from Stardom (2013)
— or rather, Cunningham’s most recent productions.
Life is but a DayDream / ink painted with stick on paper, 59x84 cm (2021)
The story of all things / ink painted with a stick and calligraphy brush on paper (2021)
Levon / acrylic on card 21 x 29cm
Come and view the culmination of this information synthesis on Thursday, 25th November, and then get to know Protagonist more intimately in your West End perambulations until mid-January.
What FORA wants
The FORA newsletter seeks to bring forward the intertextuality that we reside in, and the inextricable ways in which art and life are linked. That is an obvious point, but one that must be constantly remarked upon, as it is one we are constantly surprised by. To be reminded of these circles is to be drawn back into the fold, equipped with the tools of thinking critically and acting compassionately.
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pps/FORA is developed on the land of the Jagera and Turrbal peoples