An online Exhibit by Monica Lacey ~ Part 2
Monica Lacey continues
her story with her visual works and words…
(If you missed Part 1,
click here).
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Curiousity: a love letter to abandoned
houses, digital composite, 2013
© monica lacey 2009-2013 all rights reserved
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I am currently working on a large installation project
for Art in the Open, a local outdoor art festival held in August. I'm creating an outdoor installation of an abandoned
house, but minus the walls, roof and floor. So the space, in the woods of
Victoria Park here in Charlottetown, will be delineated by hanging windows,
doors, and furniture. I'm making personal item-type things to have around
the 'rooms,' but the furniture and other materials I'm using are almost
exclusively salvaged.
I've had a fascination with/attraction to abandoned
houses for years - I have photographed and explored hundreds of them. I'm
interested in the curiosity that drives this exploration, why I/we want to look
through someone else's discarded stuff; in the stories or fragments of stories
one might find if one explores...I've come to believe that places and objects
have their own feelings and experiences, so expressing that will be a part of
the piece as well. This installation will be a whole new thing for me
because I'll be constructing the 'house' rather than simply discovering it…building
a kind of love letter to these houses I've known. It's going to be the
largest project I've ever done, which is very exciting.
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the haunted
mind (your thoughts exhaust you
installation view, mixed media, 2012
© monica lacey 2009-2013 all rights reserved
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I grew up studying
dance - ballet, jazz, modern - and my husband, Devon, has a background in
Capoeira and Contact Improv Dance. We both love to move and dance and we
found there were no opportunities in Charlottetown, as adults, for dancing
other than going out to a bar.
We wanted to create an atmosphere that was
safe, encouraging, and inspiring for people to come together, express
themselves freely, and experiment with different kinds of movement, (for
instance using a verbal prompt to begin a series of movements such as
"you've lost something tiny and are trying to find it while in a
rush").
We began in 2011, and we run our sessions weekly during the
winter.
Our focus is on the enjoyment of dancing/creative movement for
the sake of it and on intuitive/spontaneous choreography as a group - there is
no performance aspect to the group.
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prairieskies,
digital composite, 2013
© monica lacey 2009-2013 all rights reserved
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I did a three week
residency in April at this amazing place called Elsewhere (www.goelsewhere.org).
It was so inspiring and energizing there - I have such a love for
materials and for infusing objects and places with meaning, and that's what
Elsewhere is all about.
There were some completely new experiences for
me, such as the interactivity with the public while you work on your project,
and also I had a whole team of curators to consult with, which was an absolute
luxury! My fellow artists-in-residence were doing work that was very
different from mine, and it's always great to be around people with totally
different ideas from your own.
The whole experience pushed me forward in
my practice in ways that I'm really excited about and I came home with a long
list of new ideas for future projects. Residencies are great
opportunities for inspiration, and I feel, really important to the development
of my career as an artist - my hope/plan is to do one a year for the rest of my
life.
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afternoon
in volterra, digital photograph, 2008
© monica lacey 2009-2013 all rights reserved
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I think community
engagement is the bare minimum - we should all be engaging with our communities
in an active way! I believe in getting involved, especially in things that
resonate with what you do and what you love. So for me, where I can be of
service to my community is through the arts, and I do that when and where
possible.
Right now I'm in my second year of teaching an art course two
days a week at a Senior Citizen's day program, I'm on the board of this town is
small (PEI's artist-run centre), and standing for nomination to the board of
the Island Media Arts Coop. In the winter I do the [aforementioned] dance
collective, lead a short fiction writing group for the PEI Writer's Guild, and
last winter I ran a monthly discussion group for artists that I hope to
continue in the future. I volunteer my time and donate artwork for
fundraisers in the community on a pretty regular basis as well. I'm also
a semi-retired Kundalini Yoga Teacher, and on occasion I offer workshops
exploring/recovering creativity via Yoga and meditation.
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Path, Fundy
National Park, New Brunswick,
digital photograph, 2008
© monica lacey 2009-2013 all rights reserved
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I feel like I have a long way to go before I'm an established artist! I'm pretty fresh out of
school and feel like I'm still finding my voice with my work. I certainly hope that I never stop experimenting, but I think I need at least a few more years under my belt before I would classify myself as established. I got started on this career path a bit late in my life, though I think I'm making up for lost time! I would love to return to school in the next few years and complete an MFA - not for the credentials so much as I'm attracted to the rigor it would bring to my practice.
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daffodils, watercolour on hot press paper, 2013
© monica lacey 2009-2013 all rights reserved
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To learn more about Monica Lacey visit:
