Meggy Laguda
para-noir
paranoia; definition: a feeling of being persecuted. noir; definition: a genre of film/fiction characterised by cynicism, fatalism and moral ambiguity.
With rising crime in Auckland City, visiting is becoming more unnerving. These realities of a post-pandemic city are becoming aggressively obvious… unfortunately made so (obvious) through my own experience.
Located in one of Auckland central’s crime hotspots, para-noir presents a darker approach to bringing people together, both in intention and materiality. There is safety in numbers, so to engage people regularly, the attraction of changing art exhibitions is hidden in its upstairs, and the lower floor is free for the public to roam the folding forms. Visitors are only shown glimpses of Imperial Lane’s inner workings, the forms obscuring their sense of sight. Even inside the space, visitors are only given glimpses of what lies beyond their personal bubble.
With every turn of a corner, another one unfolds.
Proceed with caution and watch your back…
you never know what awaits around the corner.
Para-noir's stylistic choices draw from neo-noir films ranging from filmic techniques such as chiaroscuro, showcasing the contrast of dark and light/unsafe and safe. The sharp lines, the twist and turns reflect the process of undergoing a traumatic experience; every corner is a potential threat. The projections of the site within the space are in reference to a haunting presence - perhaps as to what the site once was, now distorted from this trauma.
The two-way mirror glass grants a hierarchy to the space. While the exhibitions allow for the circulation of people in Imperial Lane, the intention is that the exhibition space is seen as a "haven" as opposed to the public downstairs area. The upstairs visitors can see more of their surroundings, including the ongoings of the downstairs floor being on the glass side of the two-way mirror glass. Whereas the downstairs visitors see themselves when looking at the ceiling, they have no idea that their curiosity and vanity have become a part of the upstairs exhibition.
