Jamming with Strangers: making friends and community through music
Jamming with Strangers is a major exhibition developed by Casula Powerhouse which will be presented from 4 Dec 21 – 27 Feb 22. It will include talks and public programs, music performances and will culminate in an explosion of fashion, music, vogueing and ballroom culture with the highly anticipated event WEST BALL 3.
The exhibition asks the questions: what does it feel like to be connected with people through music?
To find answers to that question we are bringing together people and communities Australia-wide, with a focus on Western Sydney, artists. . This is a time to build intimate relationships again, connect with people through music, and share the importance of communal spaces with musicians, fans and friends; to create a sense of belonging. The exhibition aims to do exactly that. The exhibition program will host a plethora of works by established and emerging Australian artists across 12 weeks plus it will also be part of the Sydney Festival Program from 6 Jan – 26 Jan 2022.
Super Critical Mass (Julian Day and Luke Jaaniste), 'AURA', 2012, performance and photographic series. Images by Alex Wisser
The exhibition will also include a section collaboratively curated with leaders of the Western Sydney Ballroom scene Jamaica Slé and Father Xander Silky. Jamaica Slé and Father Xander Silky have worked with Casula Powerhouse to exhibit artists from the community and key costumes from the Australian Ballroom community.
Each gallery space at Casula Powerhouse will be utilised and with some new commissions as outlined below;
Julian Day (new commission)
The new commission will involve a 4-channel video work capturing the various singers in video portraits. This work was originally developed through choir workshops held at Casula Powerhouse in 2013. The 4 screens will be exhibited in different locations throughout the centre. Their singing voices will play seemingly at random, it will appear to audiences that the building is filled with the voices of local singers, there may even be moments where the voices find harmony. This work captures kinds of communities that come together, find harmony, but ultimately disband.
My Le Thi and Azo Bell (new commission)
My Le Thi and Azo Bell will create an interactive sculptural installation which will also feature video elements.
Working title: Gukoongboom.
My Le Thi says:
"The installation is inspired by my memories of village life in the Vietnamese Central Highlands, where music was an essential part of the community. Traditional musical instruments were made from natural materials such as rocks, wood, gourds, animal horns, animal skins, vines and bamboo.
Since the Vietnamese Government introduced "Kinh Tế Mới" (New Economy), many forests have been destroyed, much wildlife has become extinct, many villagers have been moved away from their homes and people from other regions have taken over the land. The traditional musical soundscape has been replaced by industrial and commercial sounds. Loss of traditional community leaves the music homeless and vulnerable to extinction. This loss of connection between music and the community is being felt all over the world.
In this project we aim to create a communal feeling through music. We invite people to participate in music creation and experience a feeling of co-operation that is rare in modern life but which we all naturally crave"
Gillian Kayrooz (new commission)
The new commission will capture the energy and feeling of being from Western Sydney and travelling to the city to participate in music cultures. The work will reveal the unique and esoteric music cultures that are created on this trip, by people who participate in this journey. People who know what its like to live in the West, spend a night out in the city and have to travel back home on the last Saturday night train will recognise the experiences captured in this work.
Kevin Diallo (new commission)
This new commission is an exploration of connection through music in digital spaces. The work is comprised of prints and video informed by songs and music of Ivory Coast (artist’s homeland) and will mimic the 90’s aesthetic of Zouglou. Kevin who was born on the Ivory Coast states “In the midst of the Covid 19 Pandemic with travel restrictions and ever recurring lockdowns I found myself going back to listening to a lot of Zouglou (popular genre of music specific to the Ivory Coast). I think having access to these songs really helps me to keep a sense of self and to stay connected to home.
I found myself scrolling through the comment sections of these songs and realised that these public forums were spaces that brought people, myself included, together (Ivorian Diaspora, broader African Diaspora, people that have a connection to Ivory Coast and also people that just stumble upon the songs) and closer to home. The comment section allows people to share memories, anecdotes, and other songs that points to a specific era in Ivory Coast history.
Kerry Toomey (new commission)
Toomey is a Gamilaroi woman who grew up in Pilliga, New South Wales. Inspired by stories of family, and her love of country music, Toomey’s work is layered with songs she grew up hearing.
Toomey has produced a selection of sculptured female torsos. They are like breast plates that encompass the essence of her life journey inspired by her favorite country songs. Each torso is made from the same mould in a variety of colors and layered with items of significances that connect Toomey back to her family and country. The work is made from paper – predominantly tissues, a delicate and fragile material that is designed as a throw away commodity. She then blanket stitched around the edges replicating a favorite blanket that she has had with her since she was a teenager. This blanket was the first item she brought to leave home with, its provided warmth and comfort for many years. One of the songs ‘’Blanket on the Ground by ‘Billy Jo Spears reminds her of family times sitting out on the lawn at night enjoying yarning and star gazing, it’s a song about romance but for Toomey it’s a song that is often played at gatherings and that encourage everyone to communally chorus the lyrics. Country music can make her cry, laugh and dance but most of all it fills her head with memories of her family and country.
Carla and Lisa Wherby
Twin sisters Carla and Lisa Whereby's iconic signature and memorabilia collections will be on display, featuring some of Australia's biggest 70s and 80s rock bands, as well as their original artworks creating during Covid lockdowns.
Justine Youssef and Leila El Rayes (new commission, expanding on their existing Say Swear series)
Multi media installation feature a series of videos filmed in Auburn Botanic Gardens and featuring ‘characters’ from Western Sydney's drill, vogue and Middle Eastern music scenes.
The artists worked with the participants to craft elaborate costumes inspired by Mortal Kombat and deeply embedded with the cultural references of their area – a heady mix of contemporary streetwear, firebrand haircuts and traditional music.
Lauren Carroll Harris
Lad Street
Lad Street will exhibit for the first time a series of photographs taken over his many years participating in the hardcore music scene in Sydney. The hardcore scene is an extremely diverse of music subcultural with a strong subcultural community investment. This series of photos will give audiences an insight into the power of audiences, the unique comradery and the creative investment that makes the whole scene tick.
Jamming with Strangers also includes a public program of events including an educational and networking event for young local musicians, journalists, and producers called Western Sydney Music Futures on Saturday February 5, 2 – 5pm. Participants will learn from leaders in a variety of music-related areas, many of whom have strong ties to the Western Sydney music community. These leaders will discuss how they are advancing in their careers, the critical politics of Western Sydney music, and how to alter the scene for the better in the future.
Casula Powerhouse will also host Dinner Music on Saturday 26 February, an evening of conversations and experimental performances over a two-course dinner at the onsite restaurant Bellbird Dining & Bar. The evening will feature a performance from the Western Sydney Ballroom community and headlines by the interactive musical commisison by My Le Thi and Azo Bell titled ‘Gukoongboom’.
Culminating to a climax for Jamming with Strangers will be WEST BALL 3. A wonderful event celebrating the diversity of the Australian ballroom community, which is predominately led by POC, Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander LGBTIQ+ communities from Western Sydney. To accompany the event will be a display of previous gowns and costumes from previous Balls, capturing some of the incredible energy of the Western Sydney Ballroom community. The West Ball is in its third year as an annual event, and 2022 will be the most ambitious yet. In the last few years, the vogue/ballroom scene has expanded on such a large scale with TV shows like POSE and the competition reality show LEGENDARY. The Australian Ballroom community was founded in Western Sydney and has grown with the leadership of two the most renowned members of the community Jamaica Slé and Father Xander Silky with notable shout-outs from the international community in support of them and the event - “I love Australia! It’s one of my favourite ballroom scenes. Ya’ll aren’t ready for what’s coming out of that country,” said Dashaun Wesley, Host of Legendary and actor who plays Shadow Wintour on Pose.
Join us in celebration and exploration where we discover - What does it feel like to connect with people through music? Jamming with Strangers is an exhibition highlighting music communities as spaces of intimacy, nourishment, and social connection. It draws inspiration from the Sydney music scene – particularly Western Sydney – and incorporates workshops, live music, and the return of the highly anticipated West Ball 3. This exhibition program is all about belonging; it expresses that fans, friends, musicians and spaces are all equally important to making and fostering belonging though music. By focusing on these intimate relationships, ‘Jamming with Strangers’ reveals the role creative communities play in influencing broader social cohesion.
