Have you heard of solastalgia? I discovered it last year, both in definition and experience; a feeling of hopelessness and dread at ecological disaster and rapid change – “homesickness while at home”. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed under that steady low hum of bad news. Understandable to feel defeated as we watch – largely powerless – as our leaders drag the chain on climate chaos or seem unable to commit to the urgent sanctions and action needed to halt a genocide. Hope can wear thin.
When Heidi Axelsen and Hugo Moline asked if I would come up with something for their new art space, Field Rooms, I was stumped. I’m not an artist. What could I do? What’s even worth celebrating right now? One night at midnight, I remembered. There are plenty of things in the world that bring joy, and perhaps it’s more important to celebrate them now than ever before.
At the end of this month, I’m allowing some hope and joy in. Two events, open to all, will be staged at The Field Rooms on two consecutive Sundays. The Field Rooms are a manifestation of resilience and hope, co-designed with our community and spearheaded by Heidi and Hugo. A simple pair of studios, clinging to the side of a looming redevelopment on the corner of McEvoy and Bourke Streets. You will all have passed the abandoned Water Works site a thousand times. Heidi and Hugo are bringing it to life before the skyscrapers come into land by staging a public art happening that is alive and can only be fuelled by continued creativity from us.
Here are my midnight thoughts on what we can still celebrate: music and connection. On Sunday 26 October, we are having a community-wide jam. There will be instruments (bring yours too). There will be a drum kit, and everyone is welcome to come and make some noise. Some musicians may be planted amongst the throng to lift our game, but we are very open to failure.
There will also be a kissing booth. A space in which you can privately kiss the one you love. It could be a dog, your lover, your kid, or the mirror – but the space is created in memory of a performance artwork by the late Katthy Cavaliere. In 2008, she staged this performance at The Clare Hotel as part of Terminus Projects, so if no one is brave enough to go inside and have a snog, that absence will be special anyway.
The following Sunday 2 November, we celebrate food and creativity with a community-wide potluck picnic and an informal art class led by local legend, Catherine Skipper. It’s simple: we’re encouraging people to make something they’ve never made before – trifle? Scotch eggs?! – and to bring it, along with a rug to the site to share. Sit, talk to each other, have a picnic and make some art with Catherine. We’ll provide the materials.
Eating together, meeting new people and having a crafternoon is a privilege we sometimes forget we’re lucky to have. After Covid barricaded us from the social, we may in some ways still be recovering. So, join us in the beautifully designed workshops – let’s chat and make.
The irony of an art project that takes place on a major building redevelopment site is not lost on me. Art can be a guilty catalyst for gentrification. It’s pertinent for Waterloo, with developers gnashing at the bit to sink their teeth into the Waterloo Estate and densify, densify, occupy.
Maybe this project is like the band continuing to play as the Titanic sinks. But another way to look at it is that all of us are artists. Art is in everything. The way we speak to the grocer, the way we arrange our shoes, the way we notice the reflections on the wall. Music, intimacy, food and creativity are vital to our survival, to our cultural health.
So even as the world is eaten away before our eyes and every inch seems capitalised, it’s crucial to make space for creating and connecting in our city. Let’s grasp those midnight thoughts and find the joy that can sustain us. We hope to see you there.
ALL OF US ARTISTS
Community Jam & Kissing Booth: Sunday 26 October, 2-5pm
Community Potluck Picnic & Crafternoon with Catherine Skipper: Sunday 2 November, 2-5pm
The Field Rooms, 921 Bourke Street, Waterloo (access via Young Street)
Website here
