Journey to the West
Two Beechcraft Twin Bonanza wings are affixed to a structural cradle to resemble a giant kite.
Kites and planes come from the same family but the philosophy behind flying kites and planes are quite different. A kite is a flying object that inspires daydreams while locating you within a specific time and place. Like a pin stuck in a map, the tethered kite marks us within the here and now. Conversely, an airplane makes the drive to be somewhere else entirely, a possible reality.
We have reversed the evolution of manned flight by taking Twin Bonanza Beechcraft wings and with a bit of paint and string, turned them back into a kite. Our aim is to re-focus on the here and now. This tension between being stuck somewhere and wanting to be somewhere else is strangely reminiscent of those early adolescent years trapped in the ‘burbs: those years of feeling that somewhere, elsewhere, something interesting was happening – it just wasn’t where you were… Conversely, this informed dislocation can inspire a punk DIY attitude of making your own fun regardless of skill-level: bands are formed, low-budget films are made and painfully earnest art is produced.
This work was realised with the generous engineering support of Tilt Industrial Design
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Developed in anticipation of the 2026 arrival of the Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) and the surrounding Aerotropolis, FLIGHT is simultaneously celebratory and critical, excited about the return of flight yet concerned about its ongoing impact on the environment.
This blockbuster exhibition is an opportunity to re-engage with flight in all its forms after an unprecedented break from it and to critically engage with the impact of the airport and surrounding redevelopments.
Liverpool is uniquely placed to tell a flight story not only because of the Nancy Bird-Walton airport is being built in our region, but because 40 per cent of our residents are born overseas. Flight has created Liverpool too.
Other Artists included in the FLIGHT Project:
Daniel Agdag * Isabel & Alfredo Aquilizan * Linda Brescia * Rebecca Brady * Chris Caines * Gandangara Local Aboriginal Land Council* Fei Gao * Claire Grant * George Haddad * Claire Healy & Sean Cordeiro * Chris Hunter * Samuel Hodge * Christelle Hug * Yvonne Koolmatrie *Ida Lawrence * Emily Kame Kngwarreye * Anna Madeleine Raupach * Amy Perejuan – Capone * Pamela Rodoreda *Matte Rochford * Talia Smith * Garry Trinh
