Mapping A/r/tography

Walking A/R/Tographically in the underground tunnel connecting two Concordia University buildings and reflections on the aesthetic mission and the purpose of public art. Experiencing walking through the busy tunnel with my classmates and looking at the art of Kamila Wozniakowska; Acer Concordiae, was not only an experience of relating to each other through the art but of an experience of body awareness and surfacing feelings of awe towards mother nature. I don't think the purpose of the artist was to immediately grab our attention. We all admitted to have never noticed the artwork until our artographic adventure. The artwork is subtly installed way above our heads protruding like small sign posts. It might be for that precise reason that we should notice the multiple stainless steel panels, because they create small rhythmic irregularities in the walls of the tunnel. The aesthetics of the tunnel and the triangular shape emerging from the wall under the neon lights come together nicely as you travel through the tunnel. Walking in the tunnel with my classmates, I am conscious of the human traffic around me while admiring the public art. I realize that the art is perfectly designed to be enjoyed while travelling at a fast pace through the tunnel to get to your class situated in the connecting building. It is installed high enough to maintain peripheral vision of people walking toward and beside you. The changing and evolving narrative of the artwork can be time-based and space-based travelling, where every step you take, guides you through the unfolding story of Acer Concordiae. I figure, no matter how often you walk the tunnel, you can notice new details in the panels and have a different experience with your surroundings every time you go to class. Because of the subject of the public artwork, Acer Concordiae, I noticed how nature is still perceivable in the tunnel. I could feel and hear the wind blowing through as you approach the exits. Water leaking from the walls was to me, a sign of the strength of water. I could feel the dampness of the tunnel. There is no escaping mother nature and the artwork reminded me of her power. When looking at the panels, I felt like a rock in the middle of a river, very much aware of the redirection of flow/traffic I was creating by standing there. Art in the tunnel is strangely interesting from the perspective of embodiment. https://vimeo.com/599231423 Walking A/r/tographically, experiencing art in an unconventional way, makes you realize the vastness of ways to present public art. My art response to being in the tunnel was about illustrating the power of mother nature. You can be a hundred feet under ground and still feel her presence and be vulnerable. Chantal Archambault January 2020