NOW YOU SEE US. Fairfield Art Prize.
Three Cibachromes 1994.
The work was the final stage of long and difficult attempt to
get Fairfield City Council and the Festival organizers to recognize
the rights of disabled artists to not only enter their work in
the show, but to be able to attend the opening, participate in
the celebrations, see the work hung. and receive their prizes.
Previously a number of artists who where disabled, had consistently
taken out major prizes in every category, yet they had been excluded
from attending. After many attempts by me acting through Accessible
Arts to get the venue changed to an accessible site was met with
indifference and then with
an equally disagreeable solution that disabled people could have
a show of their own, it was decided to take the issue to the human
rights tribunal. The
reaction to this move by me by a number of groups in Fairfield
verged on the hysterical, rumours and threats, that disabled people
were trying to spoil the festival for others spread. The
tone of NOW YOU SEE US is not conciliatory. It
must be seen in the context of a hostile to the end Festival organization
and an indifferent Fairfield Council. The
work was originally made on an Amiga 2000 Computer to be shown
on a monitor. We were not able to present the work in that format
so three cibachromes were printed and presented in place of the
computer generated work.
My thanks to Accessible Arts INC. NSW. The Disability Legal Centre.
NSW. and Daniel Ormella who generously produced the Cibachrome
Images.
My thanks to Accessible Arts INC.NSW. The Disability Legal Centre.
NSW. and Daniel Ormella who generously produced the Cibachrome
Images.
