Mystery
chamber a real eye opener
Staff,
students and visitors to D&A College have been fascinated by the
appearance of a sealed white box in the atrium area of the Gardyne
Campus.
Standing
8ft high by 8ft by 4ft wide, the mysterious chamber is featureless
but for three enigmatic statements: “my shroud; my shelter; my
tomb”.
Those bold
enough to peek through the strategically-placed spy holes are
presented with the projected image of a shroud bearing the same
motif, in a barren, sunless landscape.
This
curious art installation is the work of Elise King, who is studying
for her BA design and creativity at D&A College.
The 11
students on the course have been hanging their work for an assessment
for a collaborative project and Elise’s piece is the only one which
is on public view.
The
project involved the students visiting secondary schools in Angus and
asking pupils what they thought the future held for design.
“The
pupils’ responses were very interesting,” explained Elise.
“We were
impressed with how environmentally aware they were, with many of them
linking design to climate change.
“This
made me think about the Greenpeace activists who were recently
imprisoned in Russia for highlighting the dangers of drilling beneath
the polar ice caps and the number of ‘melt holes’ which were
occurring on the Arctic ice.
“To add
a Dundee dimension to this, I incorporated elements of Captain
Scott’s journey to the south pole, his tent becoming his shelter,
his tomb and his shroud.”
The
Moniefieth resident made the shroud herself and embroidered the
pattern of Scott’s sweater along the hem.
In keeping
with this idea Elise opted to create an image using light projection
which can only be seen when there is no sunlight, hence the sealed
chamber.
Captions:
Inside the
enigmatic installation – the shroud with tiny mirrors representing
‘melt holes’.
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Issued by:
Bill
Dower,
Press
Officer,
D&A
College,
Kingsway
Campus,
Dundee.
DD3 8LE.
Phone
Dundee (01382) 834825.
e.mail
w.dower@dundeeandangus.ac.uk
Dundee
and Angus College is a charity registered in Scotland: No. SC021188