Curated by Stephanie Chung
‘Rhizomizing en route’ is an exhibition about the ambivalent relationships between localities and the sense of belonging and community, exhibited from the 15 June to the 13 July.
“Rhizomize” describes how roots are grown in a radial, unexpectable manner. In this era of constant movement and displacement, we are urged to reconsider whether the prevailing discourses surrounding identities of diaspora, migrants, and so on – often steered by stereotypical associations – suffice to encompass the complexity of our visceral experiences.
This project seeks to create a platform for dialogues and community, exploring how we have been striving to belong, connect, lay down roots in a place, and locate our community and position ourselves within it, all while being perpetually on the move. Artists with varied experiences of displacements/movements come together to examine the communities they are part of, have left behind, or have barely known. Their intimate explorations, embodied in their works, shed light on the inherent ambivalence, or perhaps the impossibility, of rhizomizing en route.
Participating artists: Henri Affandi, Kemi Ajose, Christie Lau, Sim Orme, Niamh Schmidtke, Studio Biped, Maggie Williams
Sat, 15 June 2:00pm-5:00pm | Opening Event
Join us for the opening event! Throughout the afternoon, you can give the map installation by Studio Biped your creative touch! Artist Kemi Ajose will also be demonstrating on her knitting machine, going through the different processes and techniques she uses in her work. You are welcome to have a go and get involved! Drop-ins are welcome. No ticket required.
At 3:30-4:30pm, Artist Henri Affandi will be hosting ‘Calligraphy Lesson’, a workshop to reconnect people with their heritage through calligraphy and language, drawing upon each other’s memories and cultural ties. Participants are encouraged to bring along their family members in this act of communal learning! The outcome will become part of the exhibition!
Registration for ‘Calligraphy Lesson’: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/rhizomizeenroute/1272435. Drop-ins are welcome as well.
Sat, 22 June 12:00pm-4:00pm | Meet us!
Come have a chat with the curator/artists to know more the stories behind the exhibition and artworks.
Sat, 6 July
11:00am – 1:30pm | Meet us!
Come have a chat with the curator/artists to know more the stories behind the exhibition and artworks.
11:00am – 1:30pm | Workshop
Machine knitting demonstration workshop: Artist Kemi Ajose will be hosting a live demonstration on her knitting machine, going through the different processes and techniques she uses in her work. You are welcome to have a go and get involved.
1:30pm – 4:30pm | Workshop
Come have a chat with the curator/artists to know more the stories behind the exhibition and artworks. 1:30pm-4:30pm | ‘You are here’ Collaborative Map Project, Studio Biped will be leading a Walking Workshop.
During the Walking Workshop, we will explore the neighbourhood, open our senses, find inspiration, and gather materials that will then used to create maps under different themes. The outcome of the workshop will be collated into a zine in collaboration with bookbinder Sim Orme!
Registration for the walking workshop: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/rhizomizeenroute/1293738. Drop-ins are welcome as well.
About Studio Biped“We are an art collective from Hong Kong newly and partly relocated to the UK. Our members have always found creativity through continuous questioning in a playful manner.So now, inspired by our first person experience of immigration, we are holding in hand a magnifying glass, in examining the unique yet diverse process of disorientation and reorientation experienced by self and fellow immigrants alike. It is our belief that to understand one’s relationships with our surroundings — however strange or unfamiliar — is to discover hidden insights of one’s root and self-identity.”
For this project, they have created an interactive map installation at Deptford Lounge library, where visitors are free to share their lived experience in Deptford and beyond.
About Sim Orme“I am a British bookbinder. My frequent relocations since childhood have led to contemplations about home and belonging. After years of movement, I have realised London is where I feel truly at home and have recently moved back.The inherent conflict between bookbinding – a practice demanding ample space – and my nomadic lifestyle has spurred a deep reflection on my relationship with this art form. I am keen to experiment how this traditional craft can transform in the contemporary context and respond to pressing issues of our time.”
Sat, 13 July 12:00pm-4:00pm | Meet us!
Last day of the exhibition! Come have a chat with the curator/artists to know more the stories behind the exhibition and artworks.
All workshop are FREE and drop-ins are welcome
For more information and enquiries, please email [email protected].
Instagram @rhizomize.enroute, @stephaniechunck, @henri.affandi, @morenikeji_textiles, @christiee._ @sim__orme, @niamhschmidtke, @studiobiped @insatiablemagpie.
