Endings are never fun. It’s part of human nature not to like them. It is often said that one of the remaining taboos in our now fairly liberal society is death and to be honest, it’s not hard to see why we don’t like talking or thinking about it. But perhaps there is something we avoid more than endings. Enter eternity. Endings, in some ways, are safe because they are certain and finite. Eternity, on the other hand is, well pretty darn big and beyond comprehension, making it potentially all the more confronting.
Eternal Realities Vol II is a mixed media art exhibition involving video, installation, performance and spoken word in which eight artists respond to the theme of eternity. The exhibit is inspired by Sydney icon Arthur Stace, best known for writing “eternity”, in chalk across the streets of Sydney, a practice he started in the 1930s when he converted to Christianity and continued for thirty five years. Curator and artist Bella Ann Townes said that Eternal Realities is intended to be “a celebration of his life and work” at the same time as exploring the concept of eternity.
Despite the exhibition being housed indoors, in a rather intimate space, there is a definite street art atmosphere. Each work is distinctively individual, but held together nicely by the theme of eternity which clearly comes across. In fact, stepping off the busy streets of Newtown and into such a calm, reflective and ambient room is almost itself a bit like a little piece of eternity.
‘Eternity Women’ by Bella Ann Townes is the most explicit work with regards to an exploration of and engagement with the theme. A range of women from diverse backgrounds and with differing beliefs speak candidly and animatedly about their views and feelings on human existence, mortality, and the potential for an afterlife. The video footage of them is projected onto a life-size, white paper mache female body, surrounded in an open casing of black fabric. It’s refreshing to hear this conversation being had so honestly and openly – just because we cannot be certain about something doesn’t mean we should ignore it.
The desire to discover purpose in this life and be part of something much grander is a common theme expressed by many of the women. And then there are those who, more pragmatically, see the idea of eternity as informed by laws of physics; if matter and energy can be neither destroyed nor created then these things must exist in a continuum, an ongoing exchange between life’s creation and decay. For them, this flow of energy and matter is what constitutes the abstract notion of the infinite.
One woman comments from a philosophical angle saying, “if you can’t say how the universe began and can’t imagine the end” then the only conclusion we can make is that eternity has to exist. Another woman makes the poignant statement, that among other places, “I think Eternity exists in art”. It’s interesting to consider too, as some of the interviewees do, that eternity might not just be an idea or a state of being, eternity could also be situated.
At times, the projected images don’t fully align with the sculpted body, which is somewhat off-putting, and viewers have to focus to hear what each person says. However, it’s worth taking time to stand in front, to observe and listen. The overall result is an effective montage of multiple perspectives, which creates the sense of inclusion in the dialogue.
Eternity is not something frequently discussed in contemporary Sydney circles. For this reason, Eternal Realities Vol II is a valuable contribution to sparking conversations.
Reviewed by Nicola Parise
