What makes a good neighbour?
Inner West Council has partnered with the 21st Biennale of Sydney to host an international billboard art project and forum.
The art project is showcased on giant billboard format at sites across the Inner West local government area for the next three months.
Residents and visitors to the Inner West are asked to look around, ask questions and make connections while prompted by the billboards to think about “What makes a good neighbour?” and “What role do artists play in connecting our neighbourhoods?”
Presented as part of the 21st Biennale of Sydney (15 March to 11 June 2018), the international billboard project a good neighbour takes up discussion by artist duo Elmgreen & Dragset, curators of the 15th Istanbul Biennial (2017).
Exhibited at nine sites across Sydney, including Ashfield, Rozelle, Newtown, and Sydenham, giant displays capturing unexpected encounters teamed with provocative questions spark reflection on the changing nature of neighbourhoods around the world and a concept fitting with Council’s “Network of Neighbourhoods” – What does make “a good neighbour”?
“Home can be ‘defined as territory where values and behavioural routines are
generated through daily experience; a place from which a feeling of belonging –
of “rootedness” – emerges.’ Considering neighbourhood relationships on a local
and global level, and against the backdrop of current and historical experiences of
migration and human movement, a good neighbour poses questions to highlight the
complexity of place and belonging: ‘Is a good neighbour too much to ask for?’
‘Is a good neighbour a stranger you don’t fear?’” – Elmgreen & Dragset.
In presenting the artworks, Sydney joins a chain of cities around the world hosting the project, including Istanbul, Belfast, Limerick, Moscow, Milan, Ljubljana, Plovdiv, Chicago and Seoul, among others.
The Sydney billboard sites include Inner West Council, City of Parramatta and Liverpool City Council areas.
Inner West 21st Biennale of Sydney – Creative Forum
At Ashfield Town Hall on Thursday, 17 May (6.30pm to 8.30pm), the Biennale of Sydney will partner with Inner West Council’s Living Arts team to present a free public talk exploring the vital role artists play in connecting our neighbourhoods.
For bookings and information, visit https://www.innerwest.nsw.gov.au/art---events/arts-and-culture/public-art-and-placemaking/public-art-projects
For media inquiries, please contact Brendan Berecry 9392 5218