Decay Time

            There are exhibitions that I have been meaning to see and haven't, such as Joyaviva.  

            There is also the Jemposium to talk about.  But the exhibition that I went to see last 

            night is only fleeting so it seems necessary to write about it now.

Decay Time, the work of Jake Carter, is on at the Mission To Seafarers, Melbourne from Thursday, 1st until Monday 5th of March.  It is sad that it has such a short life as this exhibition is beautiful in a very raw and understated way.

I have never seen a show where the adage 'less is more' describes it as perfectly as this one.  A steel fountain sits in the middle of a domed room and water flows onto electronic devices that catch the sound of the water beating onto it.  They are attached to some sort of sound board that hides to one side of the room.  Sound flows from speakers that hang from the high dome, obviously originating from the water in the fountain.  This sound is reminiscent of whale's song.   The fountain is the only prominent object in the room.  It is a raw steel dish sitting on a stem.

For the observer this is a gentle and peaceful experience in sound.  Furthermore, if you share this experience with a friend, trying to chat is strange.  The acoustics of the room carry the voice away and seems to plant it somewhere else.

Jake Carter's exhibition fits well within Mission to Seafarers.  He seems to have drawn from the history of the building and distilled it into his installation.

Decay Time
The Mission to Seafarers
717 Flinders Street Docklands,
Melbourne