Shumakom

The work of Nerelle Jubelin marks the journeys that objects make through the world and the history that accrues to them. Her practice acknowledges that any notion of modernism has been freught with dislocations, constantly changing and reinterpreting how the work comes to be recieved in one place or another.

About the exhibition

THE EXHIBITION
Shumakom might be seen as an exhibition-in-progress or a sketch towards
an exhibition.

It is the result of a dialogue between the artist, Narelle Jubelin, and myself as curator, concerning how an exhibition might be made today,
specific to the Artists’ House space. This is more challenging because the artist has addressed the space without visiting it. Instead she
chooses work with materials sent to her, and developed in parallel to the project. Her absence must not be seen as a lack of commitment to
the project. On the contrary, the project is an open space for her which allows her engagement to continue throughout the duration of the
show.

THE INSTALLATION

The installation works consciously with the spaces of the building. It uses only the natural light that is available from the windows and
skylights.

It consists of four distinct elements:

1. The Shelf. It is a simple system which will allow new works to be placed in the exhibition as they arrive. The first shelf is designed to
run continuously throughout all but one of the rooms on the exhibition floor. It articulates the flow of the space. The second shelf stops
that flow, being both a method of display and a physical barrier to entering the last room.

The shelves are placed at a height of 140 cm – the height of Narelle’s shoulder.

2. The Texts. These texts have been – and continue to be – written by myself to Narelle. I send her my observations and research in relation
to our dialogues. She ‘edits’ these by reinscribing them, in whole or part, onto gesso boards with silver point. There are many voices in the
texts, and it is often unclear who is speaking, myself, the artist or others still.

Some of these texts are simply references to absent objects. (These are signaled by thicker, box-like boards.) The reference which is first
visible is to a mirror, designed by Eileen Gray for her E-1027 house in the South of France, in 1926-9. As an integral element in Gray’s
design, the mirror functions as a reminder of the house which underwent a series of ‘colonisations’ after it was built – most notably by Le
Corbusier who, in several ways, sought to claim the space as his own.

It is, perhaps, no accident that the convex shapes of the mirror are reflected in the ‘kipa’ of the skylight.

Other ‘themes’ include notions of blindness as a metaphor for making art at this distance.

Also, there are descriptions of walking – both in the space and outside of it. Walking is a way of marking one’s presence in a place. Perhaps
walking the streets ofJerusalem today might in itself be a political act.

Importantly, there is room for ideas to develop between Narelle and myself as the show proceeds.

3. The Frames. Seven frames are positioned along the shelving. They will be filled with needlework renderings of Gray’s mirror, taken from
an archival photograph. This technique is typical of Narelle’s practice. Like the handwritten boards, it is a way of invoking objects,
temporarily claiming them for her own discourse.

Because of the nature of the show, the needlework pieces will arrive one by one and will be placed in the silverframes. Although most will
address the same image, Narelle will be unable to compare them, since they will only come together in the space. There is one needlework
piece that was made prior to the show, of the Blind General. It works like a full stop in the syntax of the show. It’s an object that
speaks of the artist’s blindness when working from a distance. It is also reflects a common strategy for Narelle to connect a new body of
work with her ongoing concerns.

4. The Mirrors. These are not, of course, Gray’s mirror, but perhaps refer to it. They are the same dimensions as the gesso boards. They
might be seen as both ‘blank’ boards, and as a way of articulating the space through the corners, where one plane meets another.