JULY 26, 2018 - SEPTEMBER 1, 2018
Belinda Fox’s exhibition, Pedestal, considers the notion that ideas which can be held as a beacon of hope can sometimes be flawed. It explores the imperfection which lies in the seemingly perfect. These works focus on this idea of a ‘fall from grace’ or the dismay that follows our naivety.
For this series, Fox has returned to the motif of water as a metaphor for this idea. Perfectly proportioned utilitarian pots feature throughout the series to express the concept that clean water is freely available to any thirsty traveller. The pots are similar to those Fox has observed throughout Burma and are hand made by local families and cared for at various stations around the cities. They represent the notion that a communal spirit survives and nourishes a place and its people in even the most dire circumstances.
Following the recent clashes with the Rohingya minorities and the lack of vision, and progress on human rights issues since Aung San Sui Kyi was freed from prison, Fox’s ‘ideals’ of this simple act have been fractured. She ponders that “freedom and fairness is not for all. Every single day people across the world still fight for basic freedoms. I wonder if those water vessels were ever made for the minorities in Burma?”
Despite this, these works retain the exquisite beauty for which the artist’s work is known. They are centered on a core idea of a loss of faith, but a beautiful collapse.
