The artwork ‘We Dance Together’ in Civic Square is a collaborative graphic intervention project created for Design Canberra Festival 2017. It is a large scale public artwork painted with brightly coloured chalk paint in the centre of Civic Square, Canberra.
The work was designed by local artist Jodie Cunningham. Jodie is a Canberra based visual artist and maker of objects and jewellery. She has an MFA, UNSW; BFA with University Medal, ANU and was the recipient of the Fulbright Scholarship for the Visual Arts.
A self confessed chromofile Cunningham has an obsession with colour, circles, pattern, symbolism and the delights of perspex. Her perspex objects are vibrant constructions of colour, that play on the qualities of materiality and light. She uses patterns and symbols sourced from local architecture and domestic spaces that explore the containment of time and memory in the membranes of the home and the architecture of our city.
‘We Dance Together’ was painted by Jodie with Geoff and Pete Filmer from Graffikpaint, and volunteer Project Coordinator Sara Edson.
The artwork is an assemblage of abstracted geometric symbols referencing modernist aesthetics, Canberra’s iconic architecture – including the Civic Square precinct; and cultural symbols for community, strength and connectivity. It pays homage to the history of Canberra, in particular Mid Century Modernism and the earlier Art Deco period, drawing on patterns and colours from architectural forms and interior decor.
The artwork invites viewers into the square through the fountain via ‘stepping stones’ of aqua and lime circles and encourages people to dance on its geometric shapes, celebrating the commonalities that bring us together.
http://designcanberrafestival.com.au/event/dance-together-graphic-intervention/