'Sink or Swim' by Penelope Cain
March to June 2009
Sink or Swim explores the migration of city workers transiting through the suburb, drawing a link between the diurnal peak flow of commuters along Kelvin Grove Road, and the migration of schools of fish.
The work's use of humour, the slightly quirky notion of office-workers dressed in business suits apparently swimming under water, and the underwater colours of greens and greys to create a visually arresting image for commuters as they pass by on their way into the city.
Penny's work links into Brisbane's character as a river city, where the movement and flow of people around the city and suburbs is defined by the river as it winds its way to the bay. Of course, prime office land is found by the river or has views of the river.
In these days of economic turmoil, the work obliquely refers to the dangers of this environment. The title ‘Sink or Swim’ notes the threat implicit in a deep watery world of global economics where the individual’s struggle to keep up may be overtaken by larger forces at any moment.
Penelope Cain is an emerging Sydney-based artist who has gained considerable recognition since her first exhibition in 2001. She works in digital and mixed media, with both still and moving image, and public art installation. She has exhibited in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Taipei, Shanghai, London, Liverpool, Madrid, Rome, and Oakland.
Penny's work was seen for the first time in Brisbane in 2007 at Figuratively Speaking: The Figure in Contemporary Video Art. She was inspired by the billboard when visiting for that exhibition. The same year she won the Churchie Emerging Art Prize.
Other awards include the Australia Council Residency in Rome, the Asialink Fellowship in Taipei, and an Artist in Residency at Megalo Studio Canberra.
