Angelica Mesiti: The Colour of Saying

Non-verbal communication fascinates the Australian multi-channel video artist. By Dee Jefferson

Acclaimed Australian video artist Angelica Mesiti is presenting a new multi-channel video work at Anna Schwartz from April through to June. Developed during a residency in Sweden, ‘The Colour of Saying’ draws on a performance workshops Mesiti conducted at the Lilith Performance Studio in Malmö and reflects her interest, in recent years, in the non-verbal ways humans communicate with each other. ‘The Colour of Saying’ shows performers from different backgrounds using their hands and gestural language: two percussionists improvising a piece without instruments; a sign-language choir signing the piece ‘Serenade to Music’; and two older dancers performing a pas-de-deux from Swan Lake using their hands. ‘The Colour of Saying’ is Mesiti’s fourth multi-channel work, the others being ‘Citizens Band’ (2012), ‘The Calling’ (2014), and ‘In the Ear of the Tyrant’ (2014). When talked to Mesiti in early 2014, she said that “prior to art school, I was on track to be a dancer. So I feel like music and performance and expression through the body have always been very natural and inherent to the way I experience the world.”

Anna Schwartz Gallery Carriageworks, 245 Wilson St, Darlington 2008. 02 8580 7002. www.annaschwartz gallery.com. Wed-Fri 10am6pm; Sat 1-5pm. Free. Until Jun 13.