Parlour play for twins and artists
A new series of creative evenings beginning next Thursday will enliven Martin Place’s corporate landscape with colour and culture.
Costumed performers will enter Harry Seidler’s MLC building on April 5 to perform and mingle alongside celebrated German artist Thomas Demand’s photography.
Mr Demand’s latest collection The Dailies features art installations in 15 hotel rooms, where the artist created models, photographed them, then destroyed the original models.
The exhibition, hosted by Kaldor Public Art Projects, is an international premiere according to Kaldor’ director, John Kaldor. “Thomas’ work are all photographs but they are very deceiving, because they are not what they are. It’s not a real thing, it’s pretending to be a real thing but it’s an illusion.”
“And the building is incredible, it’s like an undiscovered gem in the middle of Sydney,” he said. “The club itself in many ways feels like a time capsule … it’s very traditional, and to put into that a contemporary art project is a great contrast,” he said.
The corresponding Parlour events are on April 5, 12 and 19, from 5.30 to 9 pm. Each night will be centred around a theme expressed through music, décor, talks, cocktails, parlour games, music by FBi DJs and performances.
Kicking off the series is the Doppelganger Parlour featuring performances by Lara Thoms, Nat Randall and drag-king troupe The Kingpins.
The Kingpins were founded in 2000 when its members won a nightclub drag-king competition. The collective of four women including Angelica Mesiti, Techa Noble, Emma Price and Katie Price, combine their talents to create video art and challenge existing paradigms.
The event includes an orchestrated discussion entitled “Lazy Susan’s Half-hour Speak-easy”. Attendees will circulate doppelganger topics such as twins, stunt doubles, detective fiction and photocopying.
Public programs coordinator, Sue Saxon, said: “The whole reason we’re creating these events is we’d really like to draw people to the installation. It will be something that is active and fun and social and exciting … a fresh way of bringing people to our projects.”
Parlour Kino Sydney will focus on films while the Mirror Parlour will feature a collaboration from the UTS School of Design and a roundtable discussion on ‘The Real, the Presence of Absence’ led by philosopher Andrew Benjamin.
“The whole experience is quite hypnotic and intriguing,” Ms Saxon said. “The subterranean levels will be caught in a time capsule, in the 20s and 30s.”
By Marilyn Hetreles
