June 9 - 15, 2013: Issue 114
‘IMAG_NE’ ART - Enliven Pittwater
Alice Machar as part of the Imag_ne sculpture outside Mona vale Library on Friday. Picture By Michael Mannington.
Alice and Ellie Machar having fun with the IMAG_NE art work. Picture by Michael Mannington.
A new program to ‘enliven’ Pittwater’s village centres through public art and cultural events will kick off shortly with a launch next month. The Enliven Pittwater project is designed to improve the street life and vibrancy of Pittwater’s town and village centres.
Mayor Jacqui Townsend said the collaboration between Pittwater Council, local businesses and the community would see a range of programs and events in our villages.
“These are likely to include ‘pop-up’ art and cultural activities in public spaces,” said Mayor Townsend. “To give residents a taste of the type of activities that will occur when the Enliven Pittwater program gets underway, we’ve placed an art installation outside Mona Vale Library.”
“The art work called imag_ne by Emma Anna is a sculpture which measures 4.2 metres in length. It will be on show from June to August,” she said.
imag_ne is composed of large wordplay letters that spell out the word ‘imagine’, although the second ‘I’ is missing. This absence operates as a blank canvass, inviting the audience to physically engage with the work in order to complete the word.
Over the last four years imag_ne has been exhibited both nationally and internationally, including at the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition in Bondi.
Sculptor Emma Anna suggests that ‘the capacity to imagine is an inherently human characteristic, shared by all human beings. Its power is to inspire us to imagine new possibilities and different ways of looking at the world and each other.’
Other initiatives to be explored as part of Enliven Pittwater include the development of a phone app with a calendar of events across Pittwater.
Mayor Jacqui Townsend said the program reflected the changing expectations of the community. “Enliven Pittwater is a wonderful opportunity for our village and business centres to become vibrant community spaces attracting more people to them.”
Michael Mannington popped down to Mona Vale on Friday to have a look at the ‘pop up’ art installation outside Mona Vale library on Friday and spoke to Melinda Hewitt, Social, Community and Economic Coordinator for Pittwater Council. Melinda explained the artwork is a prelude to the Enliven Pittwater project which is a revitalisation project, designed to improve the ‘street life’ and vibrancy of town and village centres across Pittwater.
"Public art such as this work is a great way to bring life to our walkways, laneways and public domains, it can spark the imagination and create community conversations" says Melinda. "We are delighted to have had the opportunity to showcase this piece" says Melinda "in the heart of Mona Vale next to our Library."
The imag_ne artwork by Emma Anna is on loan to Pittwater Council from June - August.
Melinda Hewitt getting into the spirit of this great initiative.
Pictures by Michael Mannington, 2013.