I love being in a crisis with you

I love being in a crisis with you

Janet Lilo and Courtney Sina Meredith, 2020
Single-channel HD digital video, colour, sound, duration 9 min 23 sec
Courtesy of the artists

Contains adult language. 

Artist Janet Lilo (Ngāpuhi, Sāmoan & Niuean) and writer Courtney Sina Meredith (Sāmoan, Mangaian) are constantly creating, and Aotearoa’s lockdown period proved no different.

Their new work is a talanoa between lovers, created from the results of a daily exchange riffing between the visual and the literal, interchanging weekly to work in the other's natural medium.

Over a month of bubble seclusion, released from the pressures of daily life, they develop an appreciation of working differently – not knowing the shortcuts, the tropes, the rules. What we are treated to is an intimate portrait of two people in the process of building a life together, while the world around them crumbles.

Spheres: An Online Video Project

An online series of moving image works exploring social distance and personal environments including works from Xin Cheng, John Chrisstoffels, Conor Clarke, Ronnie van Hout, Sonya Lacey, Janet Lilo, Sione Monu, James Oram, Nova Paul, Bridget Reweti, Sriwhana Spong and Matavai Taulangau.

Considering the recent popularity of the word ‘bubble’, the Spheres series examines how we interact, and our emotions, thoughts and sensations in relation to our surroundings. German philosopher Peter Sloterdijk described societal structure spatially, as spheres expanding from intimate bubbles to globes and foams. These works offer different perspectives on social distance, personal environments and the close radius of home.

We invited artists to share something of their spheres, the ideas and places they live with and around. Their works touch on a variety of concerns, from environmental issues to consumerism and the importance of preserving cultural knowledge. Experienced online, they also reflect on representation and the contemporary circulation of imagery and information, the transfer to digital that allows us to reach out into the world.