Venue: New Wynd, between Argyle Street and Osbourne Street Description of artwork: 'Annul' was a new site specific art work from juliana CAPES that over the course of three days responded to the concept of luck as it is found in the urban environment. Responding to the common superstitions of cracks in the pavement being a source of misfortune if accidently walked upon, but alternatively luck coming from finding a pin, or more recently a penny, on the street, Annul nullified the luck in New Wynd to create a equilibrium of superstition. This was achieved by filling the pavement cracks of New Wynd with pennies and pins. The Public happened upon the work and the pennies and pins were pilfered as the audience saw fit. After the three days the pennies and pins that were not purloined were left to become part of the street and to become part of the city to be happened upon by chance. Statement about current work: juliana CAPES's practice has a strength and energy due in part to a diversity of approach that involves her working concurrently with the alchemy of stuff and pecularity of place. She often uses non traditional media in her art, finding inspiration in unexpected objects, places and processes. This richness of methodology conveys very directly an enjoyment in making. Working in this way she is interested in drawing attention to the background of our daily lives, picking out beauty and magic where it is generally goes unnoticed. Conceptually she is interested in contemporary systems of belief, working from the surmise that the society she lives in wants to believe but canít quite manage it. Recent work has dealt with belief in love, beauty, faith and permanence, simultaneously critiquing and celebrating these concepts. She is interested in finding the space between the two activities and questioning what happens therein. An overlapping concern is with the aesthetics of the kitsch and the beautiful. She maintains the need for a balance between these states in her work and looks for the areas in which they coincide. Biography of artist: juliana CAPES is an Edinburgh based artist who has been practising since 1997. Her practice is currently focussed on research into belief systems and the relationship between kitsch and beauty. She works with a broad range of materials and contexts, enjoying the alchemy of stuff and peculiarities of places. Recent exhibitions include "Magazine" at the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop August 2004, Extension at the Glasgow Art Fair April 2004, and ëWhatís love got to do with it?í, Market Gallery, Glasgow, February 2004. CAPES is a past committee member of Protoacademy in Edinburgh, a contemporary art based research unit that provided a meeting point somewhere between the academic institution and the public realm and a current member of E m e r g e D. She is also active in socially engaged contexts, including working with Edinburgh Artlink and the National Galleries of Scotland on collaborative and educational projects since 1998. Passionate about supporting artists networking, she is a member of the a-n Scotland Networking Artists Networks (NAN) advisory group and is currently coordinating a-nís partnership programme of artistsí events in Scotland during 2004. |