Q U B ET H E

Tapan Moharana

T H E Q U B E

COVER:

Untitled (CUBE TWO), 2015 wood, iron 1800 x 1800 x 1800 mm

ABOVE, RIGHT:

Untitled (CUBE TWO) [detail], 2015 wood, iron 1800 x 1800 x 1800 mm

For The Qube exhibition at Paper Mountain, my body of work includes a sculpture installation and numerous drawings.

The installation is largely composed of a cube formation and appendages, of various materials. This work represents my impressions of Australia as a foreign land to the lived space I am accustomed to in India. Through organic and inanimate materials, I work to integrate aspects of both worlds.

The concept for this body of work stems from my understanding that man has excavated materials from the earth for millennia. In the case of my homeland, once monolithic structures of marble deposits have been reduced to rubble. The cube that I create, references this change of structure and function within my environment, be it Australia or India. It presents for consideration the possibility of revival.

Over the past four years I have developed this concept, creating a series of CUBES, one each year.

CUBE ONE was executed in 2013, from marble slabs, which shifted this material in its structure and function.

CUBE TWO was constructed as a wooden frame in 2015, enclosing branches made from cast iron. This installation suggested a manufactured environment that has been destroyed by man.

CUBE THREE, created in 2017, denotes the concrete environment of a metropolis with signs of reclamation as tufts of vegetation sprout outside the cube.

CUBE FOUR is the current installation for this exhibition. It represents similarities among all global urban environments through its construction of concrete, iron and Perspex, with added sound effects and lighting. Integrated within this CUBE are the materials of nature, represented through woven tree branches and (boxed) marigolds.

Ultimately, the gallery can be considered a cube. As an ‘institutional’ space with white walls it is barren when empty. However, the structure and function of this space can change with the installation of artwork. The space can be transformed to a ‘lived’ space as its audience interact with the work and each other.

My evolving understanding of the cube is a limitless exercise, as I play with the four dimensions of the tesseract, the form which ‘hides’ an inner cube but also ‘unwraps’ into eight conventional cubes. This concept has become a metaphor for my arts practice, as one thought feeds into another, boundlessly generating new forms. I assemble the organic, inorganic, the industrial and geometrical, as offerings to the viewer for further contemplation, dialogue and interaction.

Tapan Moharana

TOP LEFT, BOTTOM LEFT:

study of my living landscape, 2016 ink on paper 570 x 760 mm

ABOVE:

The Arrangement (CUBE ONE), 2013 yellow sandstone 910 x 850 x 850 mm

ABOVE, TOP RIGHT:

View to the horizon (CUBE THREE), 2017 cement, live plant, table wheels 305 x 610 x 560 mm

RIGHT:

study of my living landscape, 2016 ink on paper 570 x 760 mm

ABOVE, TOP RIGHT:

QUBE (CUBE FOUR) [installation view], 2017 perspex, cement, iron, wood, glass, marigolds 1400 x 1900 x 1400 mm

BELOW:

View to the horizon, 2017 ink on paper 203 x 279 mm

The Qube was made possible through travel sponsorship from Lalit Kala Academy, New Delhi and the Artist in Residency program at the School of Art and Design, Curtin University.

A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T S

Gabby Loo Ben Yaxley Carolina Arsenii Karoline Forsberg Laura Margaret Nathan Tang Stephanie de Biasi Tatiane Van Den Akker Claudia Minutillo Devan Job Danyon Levi Natalie Blom Claudia Hogan

Teresa Watts Claire Taylor Lucy Leech Felicity Eustance Shauna Goh Phoebe Mulcahy Matthew Perrett Jack Caddy Sharon White Brooke Barker Shannon Fae Madeline Sarich Brooke Jones

The artist would also like to thank:

» Camilla Loveridge for her curatorial advice and support

» Daniel O’Connor, Catherine Landro and the team at Paper Mountain for their exhibition space, professional and voluntary support

» Members of the community who have supported Tapan through crowdfunding

» Mark Parfitt for his mentorship and for opening the exhibition

Paper Mountain would like to thank their magnificent Gallery Attendants:

Johnson Doan – General Manager Catherine Landro – Gallery Manager Jenn Garland – Gallery Projects Manager Jennifer Dunmill – Communications Manager Matilda Chaney – Marketing Officer Mark Robertson – Graphic Designer Mark Wahlsten – Graphic Designer Melissa Mercer – Marketing Projects Assistant Kelsey Cross – Front of House Manager Lucy Leech – Front of House Coordinator Sophie Nixon – Studio Manager Leslie Rigot – Events Manager Naoto Hara – Photographer Tom Allen – Photographer

The Operations Team:

Upstairs, 267 William St, Northbridge info@papermountain.org.au

papermountain.org.au

Paper Mountain is an artist-run initiative co-directed by:

Jenny Scott Daniel O’Connor Demelza Rogers Steven James Finch Catherine Landro Jenn Garland

Design by Mark Wahlsten All photos courtesy of the artist.

Supported by:

Printed by

Paper Mountain is on Noongar land.