Heading for Extinction

'Heading For Extinction'

an art work by Emily Donehue

"After reading your rationale, I want to help you create an artwork that relates to the concept of “assemblage” (Richardson 2010, p.25) and social spaces. Here is a list of descriptive, prescriptive, and abstract instructions for you to consider: " 

"Move every chair in the space from the position you found them in" 

"You must include some aspect of interactivity to the space, something that must be experienced by more than one person"

"Leave a mistake in the finished product instead of fixing it "

“Success is counted sweetest/ By those who ne’er succeed./ To comprehend a nectar/ Requires the sorest need.” (Dickinson, 1867, p.1110) 

“He who binds himself to a joy/ Does the winged life destroy/ But he who kisses the joy as it flies/ Lives in eternity’s sun rise.” (Blake, 1863, p.746)

This is Emily Donehue’s living room which has been moved from her house in Castlemaine, where she lives with her four daughters and partner and has been placed into the mature age dining room. This installation, as part of Donehue’s Creative Arts degree at Latrobe, pulls our attention to the beautiful world that we live in.

 When creating your artwork, think about this quote from Jack Richardson:

“Interventionist practice provokes social dialogue and collaboration and produces an art form that can function as the basis for intellectual investigation into the social environment” (Richardson, 2010, p.20)

By adorning the furniture with her family’s sentimental nick knacks, flowers from her garden and fabrics collected on travels and contrasting this with information on Climate change she is attempting to express the disjunct that she feels when surrounded by the abundance and blindness of our society.

"Incorporate the written word in some form, follow your instincts."

"Make the work so that it is able to be seen from all angles"

Please feel free to eat your lunch at the tables and rest awhile on the couches.

"must encourage social collaboration."

"I want my instructions to work with the ideas given in your rationale, and find ways to make them more challenging. I did not want to go completely against anything you have mentioned, but instead, put constraints on the ideas you offered to propose an interesting challenge. I wanted to encourage the sense of community you mentioned by giving a constraint that meant people had to interact with the space as a group."