CAAKE 2016

COLLABORATIVE ART [AND+] KINETIC ENVIRONMENTS
CAAKE

The film READINGS IN PASSAGE (2016) documents the poetic essence of a project that maps an embodied sense of inquiry through collaborative partnership. The project began with a residency in the Sperrin Mountains and continued with group collaboration and discussion at the R-Space Gallery in Lisburn. Project collaborators included Gail Mahon (founder), Tara J Murphy, Rachel Gomme, Sandra Robinson, Bronagh Corr-McNicholl, and Bridget Byrne.
The intention was to explore the landscape through material and embodied practices to understand how the landscape impacts creative practice and expands notions of performance and installation creation.

Over four days in the Sperrin Mountains and a week in the gallery space, the group discussed, observed, and created material and movement gestures inspired by their experiences. The film captures their time on the mountain, gathering material through individual practices in clay, mark-making, dance, and photography. On April 16, 2016, R-Space Gallery hosted a one-night performance installation that showcased the culmination of their embodied learning and the connections between people and the environment at the mountain's peak.

Beginnings of CAAKE
The CAAKE Project began in 2013 with City of Culture seed funding when founder Gail Mahon sought collaboration with artists, poets, makers, and movement performers to foster conversations about culture and shared creativity. The initiative aimed to understand our experiences of climate and elements within diverse social and ecological landscapes. Over the years, postal collaborations and residency projects allowed for testing creative methods, processes, and ways of thinking through active research and performance practice.

The residencies fostered new socially engaged perspectives, blending gentle and radical responses to adaptive learning situations. They involved direct community engagement through workshops and dialogues, highlighting how creative practice reveals overlooked moments and potential connections. These explorations, often in uncertain settings, led to time-focused, intensive experiments, experiences, and reflections within collaborative groups.

This collaborative process significantly advanced Mahon's practice, leading to the development of StudioMA_hon. CAAKE became a transformative process later shaping her current research on Ecosomatics at Ulster University. She views her practice as an "ecology" blending art, health, material experimentation, and collaborative partnerships in Northern Ireland.


Go to the LINKS section to reach the CAAKE website and social media documenting the project- Readings in Passage (2016-2017) and FL*OOOW Orient_Ornament_Order (2019-2020)