sounding out space V: 'Do You Love Me Now'

Cats- one says- are more connected to the (built) environment than to their owners. They occupy a space in a very particular way and seem to make it their own. They sit at strange angles at certain chairs or floors, move along invisible lanes, avoid one area and prefer another for no obvious reasons. Or are there?
During 28 April and 03 May 2010 Minka occupied the space of PS², during which time she was recorded with two remote controlled cameras and observed by Fiona Larkin.
Curiously, Minka's subtle occupation of the gallery space provoked particular reactions in passers- by, frustration, empathy, even anger. As Minka's transplanted daily routine becomes public so the publics reaction becomes increasingly visible.
With many hours of footage, Fiona Larkin now edited a video piece shown on two small monitors. A subjective documentary of a cat in a space and passers-by on the street.

On display
Edited footage, presented on two monitors: CCTV - 44min
Remote control camera- 18min
46 videostills, printed on handcut white newspaper

Over the last two years, four artists explored the space of PS² within the series of 'sounding out space'. It is a series of explorative projects around aspects of space (architectural, emotional, historical, practical…).
The 23m² of project space with its public exposure to the street is the object of investigation with a wide range of multidisciplinary approaches; artists, musician, choreographer, cat, interior designer, spiritualistic medium, refurbishment people, tenants...

'sounding out space'

(1) Matt Green: 'Present place' , 2008
(2) Kathy Graham: 'Portraits', 2009
(3) Tobias Sternberg: 'Yourself from the outside', 2009
(4) Joanna Karolini: 'Unpriviliged Highs and Lows', 2011
(5) Fiona Larkin: 'Do You Love me Now', 2010/11
(6) Laura Graham: 'THE SPACE in BETWEEN', 2010
All projects are recorded and documented by Fiona Larkin.

Animals in art Animals and their representation in art dates back to prehistoric times, most significantly in the cave paintings of Lascaux. As emblems of power and dominance, they appeared in Greek and Roman sculptures and later symbolized Christian values, virtues and gospel writers.
George Stubbs gained perfection in his portraits of horses in the 18th century, and Barry Flanagan’s humorous sculptures of hares populate plaza around the world.
Not to mention the use of animal characters in Disney world, sci-fi … Animals become more active players in art in the 1950’s with Congo, a young chimpanzee, whose paintings gained international reputation.
Jannis Kounellis used horses in his theatrical installations of the late 60’s and Joseph Beuys performed in ‘ I like America and America likes me’ (1974) with a coyote, both locked in the same room. Damien Hirst came to notoriety in the early 1990’s with his’ pickled sharks’ and Bruce Nauman filmed a mouse in ‘MAPPING THE STUDIO II’ (2000).

Video still- printed on newspaper Animals and PS²

PS² has its own short history with animals as living- or dead- objects: With a fish tank full of –living- fish in ‘For Those Who Care’ by Julie Brown (2006); Dandy the horse got a guided tour during Anne-Marie Dillon’s project ‘Once Upon Now’ (2007); in ‘red in tooth and claw’ (2008), PS² displayed taxidermied animals on loan from the Ulster Museum and in ‘Budgie Butlin’s’ (2010), Catherine Roberts built a diorama, occupied by 45 budgies.