To find out about other projects taking part in this initiative, click here.

Our project

We are planning to develop and test a traditional tableau vivant during The Lab, which will be presented as part of the Underbelly Arts festival 2013.

Tableau Vivant is a French term which means living picture and became popular as a movement in the late 19th C and early 20th C. It has been said the tableau vivant marries art forms of the stage with those of painting or photography. Tableau is also from the French diminutive of "table". This project is a further exploration for us as collaborative artists into the spectacle and the spectacular around the dining table. Our large temporal sets to date consider excess, pop culture, and the use of food as a "triumph of the table" or "feast for the eyes".

How much it's gonna cost

About $4,000!!

Materials for set $1,300 (recycled mostly, but it's the small stuff that costs the most - screws, lights, etc)

Materials for tableau sculptures $700 (we're planning to make some REALLY BIG things)

Materials and artists fees for costumes $1,300 (the fees are for other artists, not us)

Documentation $200

Through crowd-funding we are hoping to raise $1,500. If we reach our target, the Keir Foundation will kick in that exact amount, meaning that your incredible support is virtually doubled!! So yeah, as we said before, for every dollar you give, you're kind of giving us two!! Amazing!!!

About Us

We are emerging artists working across sculpture, performance and installation.

The focus of our collaborative work is on people and space, spectacle and modes of exchange, with a particular interest in social communities, popular culture and consumption. Our living installations have been shown at Campbelltown Arts Centre, Carriageworks, The Paper Mill, Peloton, Damien Minton Annex, Eastern Bloc, PACT Theatre, The Rocks, Harvest Festival, and at The Palace Hotel Broken Hill.

We are both currently studying at the College of Fine Arts UNSW. We manage the student organisation and student gallery at COFA, and earlier this year, we were joint Artistic Directors for Art Month Sydney 2013. Alex has just completed a two-year Directorship at Firstdraft. Penelope is also an ex-Firstdraft Director, and is one of the founders of The Red Rattler Theatre.

www.penelopealexandra.com

About Underbelly Arts

Underbelly Arts exists to uncover Australia’s next great artists.

Since 2007 the Underbelly Arts Lab has provided opportunities for more than 600 artists to develop and create in a unique and supported environment where, over two weeks, audiences are invited to watch art unfold and take part in the process.

In 2013 Underbelly Arts is once again taking over Cockatoo Island and giving artists the chance to create and respond in one of Australia’s magnificent settings. These works will then be showcased as part of the Underbelly Arts Festival, a two-day art party that celebrates process, new ideas and the best emerging and experimental artists across Australia.

The Underbelly Arts Festival will take place on August 3 & 4.

What's in it for you?

Rewards!! Love!!! A visual spectacular to remember!!!!

Every dollar counts and we have little gifts for your support!
There's a bunch of rewards including laser-cut pineapples, tableau vivant snow-domes, object sculptures by the artists, tickets to the Underbelly Arts festival, and limited edition photographic artworks from the installation