grappling on the precipice of the squirt and the stream

Apr 13

Kieran Bryant
grappling on the precipice of the squirt and the stream
12 April - 19 May, 2018

Video still. Image of an industrial tunnel, with a small stream of water descending into a deep, dark hole. White text reads: "How do you think this is the deepest hole in the water?" — Kieran Bryant, *how do you think this is the deepest hole in the water*, digital still, single-channel video, 2017, Image courtesy of the artist.

Artist Statement

grappling on the precipice of the squirt and the stream presents a series of video, mixed-media installation, and collaborative performance that examine differing modes of a fluid queered body experience in its connection to both water and the hole. Looking at the connections that can be made between man-made watery sites such as dams, fountains, canals and sewer drains, and the human body; particularly sites of control, shame, and regret in a queered body. This exhibition asks how water, through its relationship with holes and orifices, can be a conduit to discuss themes of queer visibility and identity signification; re-contextualisation of image and sound in popular and contemporary culture; and collaborative distance. An exhibition text written with Spence Messih addresses some of these themes in a collaborative back and forth that touches on the use of sensuality. This new work was developed at the Cité Internationale des Arts Paris with the support of UNSW Art & Design and the generosity of Mr Ross Steele AM.

Installation view. Left to right. Large black poster with white text displaying public programs and events for the gallery. Suspended fabric print of white texture on black. 2 Small purple prints on the wall in a corner. — Kieran Bryant, *grappling on the precipice of the squirt and the stream*, installation view, 2017. Photography by Document Photography.

2 purple prints with black text installed next to eachother in a corner. Left, warm purple on horizontal paper. Right, cold purple on vertical paper. — Kieran Bryant + Spence Messih, water we / deep focus, laser print on silk matte, 115 x 158mm / 158 x 115mm, 2017-18. Photography by Document Photography.

Print on white fabric suspended with black cord. The print pictures detailed white textures on a dark black background, like reflections on the water's surface. White text reads: "how empty of me to be so full of you". — Kieran Bryant, *how empty of me to be so full of you*, digital print on polysilk with cord, 2 m x 1.35m, 2018. Photography by Document Photography.

Installation view. Left, alcove area created by gallery walls with 2 black stools and cords on marked square on the floor. Right, suspended fabric print. — Kieran Bryant, *grappling on the precipice of the squirt and the stream*, installation view, 2017. Photography by Document Photography.

A suite of live performances will be presented throughout the duration of the exhibition. Over 5 successive weeks the artist will collaborate with performers Eugene Choi, Neil Beedie, Marcus Whale, and Megan Alice Clune. Each performer will re-interpret and re-imagine songs used in ‘wetness quartet’, the artist responding with movement (and for one week, song). The final week will consist of a massed harmonisation including all performers, a concluding act of collaborative flow and fluidity. This performance series was developed in part during Liveworks Lab 2017 at Bundanon Trust with the support of Performance Space.