Airing Dirty Laundry

Wednesday 24 July - Sunday 11th August 2024

Rockingham Art Centre. Rockingham, WA

A collaborative exhibition featuring Deborah Worthy-Collins and Leuca Jane Ziemons

Over the past three decades (Crane, 2017; Kabat-Zinn, 1994, 2017, 2018, 2020a, 2020b; Shapiro & Walsh, 2003), the many benefits of being attentive to the present moment—as it is happening—have been well documented but within the demands of the ever pervading culture of busyness, it seems time to simply ‘be’ is becoming less and less attainable. Learning to (Engel, 2016) walk mindfully, to breathe and be with what is, may seem like an easily achievable task but for the vast majority of people, the challenge to simply be with one’s thoughts for even a few seconds can feel wholly unachievable and at times utterly intolerable. Stephen Laumakis retells the story of the Buddha who was asked what the monks spend their time practising (2008, pp. 257–258) . The Buddha’s response is one that underlies Zen Master Thich Nhất Hạnh’s core teachings, “We sit, we walk, we eat” (Nhất Hạnh, 2008b). The key to the Buddha’s response was, of course, that the monk fully embodies each moment as it happens. Eating, whilst knowing one is eating, seems to be an easy task and yet most often eating comes with thoughts of the past, ruminations upon the future, planning, judging, reflecting and indeed an entire meal can be finished without a single second of present-moment awareness.

This exhibition seeks to investigate, explore and express these often unnoticed everyday moments from the individual perspective of both artists. This noticing,recording and re-presenting these moments in these uniquely personal ways, not only acknowledges the happening itself but also reflects upon the often deeply individual pursuit for emotional regulation through gentle acts of tactility. Everyday experiences of life permeate the exhibition space. The tea stained cloth, the garden weeds, the swathes of cloth, the sound of a dining room clock - these interactions and engagements with daily life have formed significant investigations for both artists. And as the connections deepen and the space holds memories of this time here and forever there remains a mark - and it is these marks that remain - hung out on the line - for all to see.

As Maria Vidal Meinert asks, “Would being able to express our states of mind materially be a relief, or would it feel embarrassing or shameful?”( Meinert, 2023). In the context of this exhibition the artists explore what it means to air their own dirty laundry and through their individual meditative practices they have collectively created a space for the audience to question the poignancy of where, how, when and why, we share.

Ziemons, L.J. (2024) After the RAIN, vintage handkerchiefs, found tablecloth, human hair, cotton thread, ceramic pots, forget-me-not seedlings, soil

Ziemons, L.J. (2022) The Existence of Presence II digital projection

Ziemons, L.J. (2024) The presence of stains: these stains of Presence, found linen tea cloth, silk thread, tea stains, animal hair, needle

Ziemons, L.J. (2024) Remnants of Repair (I), bamboo yarn, cotton yarn, found garment remnants mixed fibres, hand dyed cotton, hand dyed silk, vintage dresser drawer, paper fragments

Ziemons, L.J. (2024) Remnants of Repair (II, III, IV), bamboo yarn, cotton yarn, found garment remnants mixed fibres, hand dyed cotton, hand dyed silk

Studio process images from Airing Dirty Laundry Photographed by Leuca Jane Ziemons

Images from Airing Dirty Laundry exhibited at Rockingham Art Gallery Photographed by Laura Sikes

View the exhibition catalogue here