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Adam Art Gallery
29 May- 25 July 2004 |
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Curatorial
Statement | Artist's
Résumé
Ruth Watson's enduring interest in the politics of representation has led to an exploration of cartography (map-making) and vexillology (the study of flags) in her art. Watson uses maps and flags to represent universal codes which hide a history of colonisation and in doing so she questions the ability of these codes to represent cultures.
The flag is a palpable symbol of colonisation, which attempts - often unsuccessfully - to consolidate shifting ideas of national identity. Such a failure was demonstrated in the USSR when the national flag became redundant as the country broke into pieces. As a sign for a nation, the flag is inextricably linked to an ideology of colonial exploration, modernisation and globalisation, in which flags rest uneasily beside other cultural symbols - such as McDonalds' golden
arches or the Nike swoosh. The flag, as a construction of national identity,
is unstable terrain. Colonial countries like New Zealand are now questioning
the imperialist tradition that underlies their national flag; like a nation in
waiting, New Zealanders now want a new sign to represent their interests.
In her work for Telecom Prospect 2004, titled Dangerous
Liaisons, Watson has painted a series of flags which are
threaded together with string to form, as a whole, a giant
infinity symbol. The pattern of the work, like a virus (perhaps
a global strain), plagues the wall. Dangerous Liaisons
could quite easily contain a more sinister plot, where
the flags are a code in a much deadlier global game; each
flag a nation, the wall a playground, the infinity shape a
symbol for shifting identities and a hidden agenda ... Watson
leaves you to decide.
Danae Mossman
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