The University of Manitoba campuses are located on original lands of Anishinaabeg, Cree, Ojibwe-Cree, Dakota, and Dene peoples, and on the National Homeland of the Red River Métis. More
Artist Name: Aoife Ryan
Title: Hanging in the Balance
Medium: Installation
Year: 2020
Artist Statement:
“[P]ositioned in the interstices of two different worlds.... (Jeremy Davies), everything is hanging in the balance. I tried to reflect this sense of suspension in my piece.
A massive tree stands strong yet vulnerable. Beneath its unearthed roots lies an otherworldly, womb-like cavern. Four photographs capture someone approaching, entering, and lying beneath the roots. The cave represents a space between worlds and an invitation to reconnect with the earth.
I developed the film sustainably using a combination of vitamin C, instant coffee, and washing powder in consideration of the earth. In transferring the images onto wood and photographing them outside, the photograph within a photograph depicts a world within a world, a mirror within a mirror and an invitation to look again.