“MIND THE GAP”
Multi-media project
September 13-15, 2011
MIND THE GAP is a multi-media, multi-platform arts initiative that was headquartered at IMC 5533 art space September 13-15, 2011. Created by Alexia Mellor and co-organized with Michelle Dunn, MIND THE GAP presented performative and new media work by emerging artists from around the globe addressing gaps and borders of all kinds: geographic and social borders, and technological and spatial gaps. IMC5533 served as a central location for visitors from the community to view video works, participate in interactive works, and get information on the site-specific pieces. With site-specific performances in public spaces around Istanbul, daily guided boat tours on the Bosphorus that offered a new perspective on orientation and the sea, and a virtual interactive mapping project, MIND THE GAP created unique and participatory experiences to revision the ways we experience art.
“Our experience of presenting MIND THE GAP at IMC5533 was a fabulous one that allowed us to see another aspect of the fabric of Istanbul,” says Mellor. “I wanted MIND THE GAP to serve as an alternative means of experiencing art, and the location of IMC5533 allowed us to take these pieces and insert them into a part of the community that really does not interact with tourists, does not typically speak English, and does not frequent the ‘art institution’. It was exactly the type of experience I had hoped to have. We are grateful to the participating artists for being open to this multi-platform presentation format and were excited to see how pleased everyone was with it!”
“We would like to give special thanks to Nancy Atakan and Hannah Sieben for all their support in making this cross-Atlantic project a success,” says organizer Michelle Dunn. “We hope to have the opportunity to work with IMC5533 again in the future.”
In an effort to bridge gaps in location, MIND THE GAP has made all of the included artist projects available online so that they can be accessed from around the world. Although the exhibition at IMC5533 took place September 13-15, the virtual mapping project, Map the Gap, continues. Participants are asked to consider “gaps” of all kinds: gaps in relationships, gaps in space, gaps in time, and photograph them, write about them, create an audio file. Email your documentation (jpg, mp3, pdf) to icont.cept@gmail.com and selected files will be displayed on the tumblr page.
http://projectmindthegap.wordpress.com
http://twitter.com/#!/mindthegap4