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01 December 2018 —
10 March 2019

Deborah Rundle:
Are We Not Ready?

Deborah Rundle, Political Colours, 2018. Black shirt with printed text, military patch and officers’ stars, khaki jacket with printed text, mannequin torsi. Commissioned by Te Tuhi, Auckland. Optimism of the Will, 2018. Two fluorescent tubes and batten holders, vinyl cut text. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Political Colours, 2018 (install view). Black shirt with printed text, military patch and officers’ stars, khaki jacket with printed text, mannequin torsi. Commissioned by Te Tuhi. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Political Colours, 2018 (install view). Black shirt with printed text, military patch and officers’ stars, khaki jacket with printed text, mannequin torsi. Commissioned by Te Tuhi. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Are We Not Ready?, 2018 (install view). Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Optimism of the Will, 2018. Two fluorescent tubes and batten holders, vinyl cut text. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Optimism of the Will, 2018 (detail). Two fluorescent tubes, battens, vinyl cut text courtesy of the artist. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Optimism of the Will, 2018 (detail). Two fluorescent tubes, battens, vinyl cut text courtesy of the artist. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Are We Not Ready?, 2018 (install view). Double sided wool tapestry, wooden frame and string. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, A Dream Seems Like a Dream, 2018. Portable Olivetti typewriter, paper, desk and desk blotter. Are We Not Ready?, 2018. Double sided wool tapestry, wooden frame and string. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Are We Not Ready?, 2018. Double sided wool tapestry, wooden frame and string. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Are We Not Ready?, 2018. Double sided wool tapestry, wooden frame and string. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Are We Not Ready?, 2018 (detail). Double sided wool tapestry, wooden frame and string. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, A Dream Seems Like a Dream, 2018 (detail). Portable Olivetti typewriter, paper, desk and desk blotter. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, A Dream Seems Like a Dream, 2018 (detail). Portable Olivetti typewriter, paper, desk and desk blotter. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Tired of Being Tired, 2016. Wood block, cardboard and acrylic paint. Photo by Sam Hartnett.
Deborah Rundle, Auspices 1943-, 2018 (install view). Looped digital animation, 15’00”. Photo by Sam Hartnett.

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Expanding upon research undertaken during her 2018 Wallace New Zealand Residency at The British School at Rome, and presented alongside new work, Are We Not Ready? is a solo exhibition by Deborah Rundle that draws upon the Prison Notebooks of Italian neo-Marxist Antonio Gramsci to create a suite of six works that examine his notion of common sense.

‘Communal sense’, or senso comune, refers to ideas that are widely accepted in popular consciousness but do not serve the populace. Rundle explores this collective impulse through a series of transcriptions across political fields, including labour and civic life.

In A dream seems like a dream, Rundle uses a Studio 45 typewriter to type a passage extracted from the utopian writings of Adriano Olivetti, owner of the Olivetti manufacturing company and originator of The Community Movement. Cross-hatching the text is a ‘net work’ reminiscent of Gramsci, suggesting a pulling through of unresolved ideas from the past.

Seven birds appear in Auspices 1943-, above a 1943 map of Rome produced by the British War Office. This is the number that any bird flies in harmony with inside the swarm of thousands that comprises a murmuration of starlings. Here, the artist draws on the ancient practice of augury to ask ‘what omens can we read today in the flight pattern of these birds?’

Press

→ Paean to Gramsci - EyeContact

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Te Tuhi Artists Talk - Christina Pataialii, Deborah Rundle, Shannon Novak & Jeff Nusz

All exhibitions are currently offsite due to disruptions caused by the Pakuranga Eastern Busway construction. The building remains open for classes and other activities. 21 William Roberts Road, Pakuranga, is the best address to enter into navigation apps to guide you to the free parking at our door.

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