Mee Jey is having a good time in terms of her artistic experience. In last 18 months of her Master of Fine Arts course, She has done around five public art/ community art projects. We never thought that we will be able to do community art in Saint Louis but then the art scene is very different. In her art school, she can do what she wants to. She wanted to pursue her community art with her studio practice and they had a course of community art where she can pursue her interest.
In this post One can see all the community/public art Mee Jey has done in Saint Louis.
The First project was with people affected with autism where she made an installation which looked like an aquarium.
Deep Blue World, 48x 72x 6 inches. 2017
This is an interactive piece specially designed for the adults with autism. Mee worked with these clients and created a layered work using ceramic, wood, plexiglass and fabric. On the first layer ceramic fishes made by the clients are fixed to the wooden panel. These ceramic fishes were designed and fired thus were an ‘unsafe’ for the clients. The upper layer is of blue plexiglass that has groves cut in it imitating waves. In those groves are the fabric fishes that can be moved around manually by the clients.
Here is a video to see the installation in a better way
Second Project: Mee Jey worked in the department of infectious disease in Jewish Barnes Hospital of St Louis and made two abstract sculptures.
Realisation, Diptych. Each piece is – 40x 30x 10 inches, 2018
This wall installed 7 layers diptych representing a male and female form. These are made of wood, foam-core and acrylic paints. Result of contemplation on the nature of life, Mee created these works to imitate several expressions of emotions described in the Natyashastra as Karuna, sringar, hasya, veer, vibhatsa, adbhuta, and Shanta. Here I am representing shanta with black color to allude to the fact that we attain ultimate peace with death.
Third Project– Mee Jey worked with the Paraquad organization and made two very different installation. One is Butterflies can’t run and other one is WO-Man.
Butterflies can’t run is an assemble of 450 butterflies handmade by Mee Jey and clients at Paraquad.
Butterflies can’t run- 450 butterflies made of clay.132x 72x 20 inches. 2018
A soft clay acted as therapeutic touch to these clients who were primarily suffering with limited body movement and fine-motor skills. Drawing inspiration from the physical disability and use of wheels as their main strength, Mee decided to create an art work using the form of butterfly. She saw the wheels of wheel chair as wings and also the fact that butterflies can’t run. (They can fly so they don’t need to run). Contrasting butterflies with the physical limitation of people was a strategic and creative choice for Mee. She believes we need to focus on strength. But the title of the work is a sarcastic comment on people who only look at our drawbacks. Hence Butterflies Can’t Run.
Here is a video of the work
WO-Man is a first kinetic sculpture by Mee Jey. Inspired by heavy dependence of these clients on the mechanized tools, Mee created a work that is motorized 6 layered wall installation.
40x 30x 12 inches, 2018.