REDFERN: Claire Bornhoffen is an exuberant young curator. She has recently established a partnership with Social-Laneway Espresso in Redfern Street near Redfern station. The café currently features work by artist Blake Paul Kendall who is raising funds for a children’s book project in support of the Penang community in Borneo.
“I’d spent the past few years curating pop-up events and exhibitions before interning at Kaleidoscope Gallery in Chippendale last year,” Claire said. “There I met my business partner, Cassandra Toscano, and together we founded Baru Art.”
“Baru Art envisions a community where experimentation is encouraged and ideas develop naturally between curators, artists, audiences and educators.”
“All projects undertaken by Baru Art give considerable weighting to gender progressive ideologies and principles that seek to dissolve nationalistic barriers and reinforce a global community.”
Showing work at Social-Laneway came about in conversation with owners Robert Bonnick and Marina Agustina shortly after the opening of the café late last year. “As an emerging curator, I’m constantly on the lookout for affordable exhibition spaces that still give artists good exposure,” Claire said. “After talking to Robert about potentially using the window to exhibit artwork, I knew that we had similar ideas about embracing Redfern’s dynamic street culture and supporting local artists, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous.”
Robert said: “We don’t charge for using the space, and utilise our social networks to bring as much awareness to [the work] as possible.”
Baru Art currently represents three Sydney-based artists (Reece Cleveland, Cal Sinadinovic and Blake Paul Kendall) and one Singapore-based artist, BDVZ (aka Benjamin Vozzo).
Claire said: “Last week we showed Reece and Cal’s work at M2 Gallery for Human Non Human. I had most recently shown BDVZ at the Dandy magazine launch at Kaleidoscope Gallery last year, and this month we launched Blake Paul Kendall’s crowd-funding campaign for the Penan children’s book, Upo Uleu (Our Sago).”
Blake Paul Kendall’s art campaign plans to raise $19,500 to produce and deliver by hand the first educational resource on the Penan language. Upo Uleu is a children’s book whose narrative Blake developed while working with Penan elders in Borneo last year. The book will be illustrated with prints from a series that he painted while staying with them.
It’s a very special story. Claire explained: “Because the Penan way of life has been under threat from deforestation and political discrimination, they are coming close to losing their language and culture forever. By producing this book, Blake will be able to help build awareness about the challenges the Penan face. He plans to deliver the book himself to every Penan household to cement the ties he formed during his first visit.”
Robert and Marina report positive feedback. “Over time we will continue to improve how we display and represent the work,” Robert said. “Even though there’s a pillar which can obscure part of the view, we hope it becomes an interesting, thought-provoking or educational focal point for passers-by.”
