This weeks Site Specific class was held at Testing Grounds, a magical place veiled by it’s abandoned-parking-lot-esque appearance.
We were met by a man named Scott who works at the site – he told us about the Sites history in relation to the buildings around it, the artists who frequent it, and the ethereal qualities of the site on a macro level.
Scott spoke about how the building that used to occupy the space, became ruined by the relentless pumping of water onto the site due to a neighbouring buildings hydrostatic engineering. Due to the damage, the building was torn down and bought by the government to act as an art space.
Scott also spoke to us about the multiple art exhibitions that have come and gone within the space, and how pieces of each exhibition are left behind, endlessly changing the landscape of the space, and in essence, becoming a form of art in itself.
We were then encouraged to explore the site on our own – we were amazed at how much was in one space on a macro level. The positioning of the pallets made the place look like a miniature city. The lights atop the flowerbeds illustrated a melancholic contrast of nature against disruptive humanity; The cracked blocks of cement growing moss created miniature places within spaces; and the piano within a shipping crate generated a rustic and vibrant atmosphere. The whole point of the trip was learning how to notice, and it takes a lot more concentration than one would think.
The class discussed perhaps going back to Testing Grounds to have dinner some evening in the future – sounds like a pretty nice idea, especially considering I don’t think I made the most of our short time there.
