This piece is adapted from our Artfull Sunday newsletter. Subscribe to receive artfully informed content, every week.
Words by Jessica Agoston Cleary
Photography by Sam Hartnett
Read time 5 minutes
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I'm writing this weeks email equal parts elated and exhausted. Over the past two days, I have probably talked with well over 300 people about the artworks currently gracing the walls of six previously vacant spaces at the historic Queens Arcade.
What has struck me most about the conversation I've been having with people from all walks of life is how moved each person has been by Arcadia. I don't mean moved to tears in a Jack slipping away from Rose at the end of Titanic kind of way.I mean moved in a very personal and specific way that can only come from a thought provoking encounter with the delightfully unexpected.
For many Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland locals, The Queens Arcade holds a special place in our collective memories. I myself spent my later teen and undergraduate years sifting around the arcade. Marbecks Records was (and still is) the place to go to discover the cutting edge of local and international underground music across all genres. The arcade is where my friends and I would meet up for coffee and wax philosophical about art, culture and music. We would then move onto Marbecks, to continue solving the problems of the world while sifting through record and CD crates for hours on end. This was of course well before the time of Spotify and Discover Weekly playlists. Serendipity flowed through our fingers rather than through algorithms. Time stood still for us then. Not because it was an analogue time, but because we were so engrossed in the moments of artistry before us.
The fact that Marbecks is more or less still in its original location, after almost 90 years, speaks to the fundamental, essential power, and vital importance of art and creativity within the fabric of a community and culture. Perhaps this is why Arcadia is having such an impact on those who have come through since we opened just 48 hours ago. There is something truly special about an encounter with art when the encounter, in an of itself, is not entirely premeditated or expected. It's that digging through crates feeling. You become an intrepid explorer. Making new, lasting connections between a moment in time, a space and place. In places like the Queens Arcade, beyond the white cube, the barriers dissolve. There is no a priori knowledge required here. All that matters is whether you're moved - what ever being moved means to you.
For the artists, showing in this iconic building offers an opportunity to place their work into a dynamic living context and connect with an audience they otherwise might not. And, it also pushes them to consider where their art could or should go; what it means in an alternative 'non art' space; or, dare I say it, in a far more human and accessible space. As an online first platform, Artfull offers this opportunity via our layers of rich and easily accessible digital content. Arcadia is in essence another rich layer to our ecosystem.
On this note of discovery, I'll wrap up, and leave you to dive into the beautiful images of Arcadia captured by photographer Sam Hartnett earlier this week. You can also explore the curated shows on the Artfull website, and if you're able and happen to be in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, I welcome you to come and see the artwork, meet the artists, and rediscover the truly iconic architectural gem that is the Queens Arcade over the coming week.
P.S. We look forward to seeing you all at Michelle Reid and Jana Wood's artist talk today, Sunday 9th October 11am. And also at Arcadia After Dark as part of Heart of The City's Art in the City art festival on Thursday 13th October.
Earlier this week, renowned art and architecture photographer Sam Hartnett captured each of our Arcadia shows. Shooting art in spaces that were not ever designed to be art galleries presents even the most experienced photographer with a unique set of challenges. Tight angles. Variable (perhaps questionable) incandescent, fluorescent and natural lighting source all competing with each other. Not to mention curious Arcade shoppers walking across carefully lined up shots, or lingering in front of windows casting shadows in places Hartnett didn't necessarily want them.
Those familiar with Hartnett's work however will know that its in these tricky, complex, and layered locations that his exceptional eye and innate skill come into their own. The images that follow are a sneak peak at Arcadia, through the Hartnett's lens.
The shows run through until Sunday 16th October. With Arcadia After Dark on Thursday 13th from 5pm. I encourage you to come down to Queens Arcade to see and experience for yourself the power of art in an unexpected, historic location.