Artist： Gregor Schneider (Germany) Date：2007
Location： Bondi Beach of Sydney (Australia)
Media/Type： Installation
Commissioner： Kaldor Art Projects, Australia Researcher： Kelly Carmichael
21 Beach Cells was installed at one of Australia’s most iconic tourist locations, it just like a military zone which was in strong contrast with its surroundings. As an artist, Schneider has a hypersensitivity to spaces of all kind, especially how architecture can penetrate and provoke inner spaces of consciousness. In 21 Beach Cells, Schneider took an everyday Sydney beach experience and provided a chilling counterpart. Sun poured into the cell, participants could hear waves through the mesh and mattresses and umbrellas gave shade and comfort. The most disturbing aspect was the psychological implication.
The installation undermined notions of the beach as an enjoyable, relaxed, egalitarian space open to all. The cell’s visitors were caught between security and surveillance, privacy and exposure, inside and outside. Evoking the political atmosphere in Australia at the time—refugees detained in foreign transit stations, race riots erupting on the beaches of nearby Cronulla and the government’s unashamedly tough stance on immigration and refugees—21 Beach Cells blended pleasure and trepidation in a disquieting and very public art work. |
