A Site-Specific work in collaboration with Bree van Reyk

Performance Review by Christina Donoghue for Arts Hub

4 stars

“The final stop was the Sydney Heritage Fleet at Rozelle Bay. Despite the word ‘heritage’ in its title and the overt past/present, elite/working-class comparison welcomed by the proximity of the Super Yacht Marina, stop four delivered a decidedly industrial treatment in the work of Jess Green and Bree Van Reyk. Percussive sound was supplied by Van Reyk striking found objects throughout the work yard. The sound of the mechanical workspace was blended with the sounds of electric guitar and resonant vocals by Green, the workshop dominated by metal vibrating sound. 

Big hART’s Acoustic Life of Boat Sheds plugs into the lineage of buildings and boats and the things and people that inhabit them. Most works were developed in situ and had the feeling of bringing attention to the sounds and resonances that were already part of the space. The artists’ attention to detail and willingness to move and be moved acted as a symphony that did not inspire critique, only appreciation.”

….”with a dollop of social good we were educated a little in this beautiful art of boat making and through music learned that the wharves that look deserted hide men and women who are still hardworking, and from time-to-time, also a rad chick with an electric guitar and killer vocals.”