Gillian Kayrooz in The Area

Gillian Kayrooz is an artist from Western Sydney.

She holds a Bachelor of Visual Arts (Honours) from Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney. In 2018 she was awarded the Create NSW Young Creative Leaders Fellowship which led her to exhibit internationally in the Asia-Pacific region. She most recently completed residencies at the Chengdu Academy of Fine Arts and the Sapporo Tenjinyama Artist Studio, ARTnSHELTER, Tokyo. In 2020, Kayrooz is a studio artist in residence at Parramatta Artists’ Studios.

Her exhibition, Argileh at Wedding Cake Rock, is currently on view at Firstdraft until 29 October 2020.

Firstdraft: Argileh at Wedding Cake Rock sounds both obscure and familiar. It evokes almost painterly images from classic Australian film, and simultaneously more contemporaneous images of careless tourists balancing on precarious rock formations – both very much grounded in landscape. How did you arrive at this concept and title for your exhibition?

Gillian Kayrooz: Since studying at art school, a lot of my work has always had ties to documenting ‘The Area’ [a colloquial reference to a group of suburbs generally situated within Western Sydney, made up of diverse cultural groups which in turn facilitate acculturation and integration among those districts] and more specifically the nuances that defined my upbringing and adolescence in Western Sydney. This time around I wanted to focus on young female identities situated in suburbia. I thought it would be interesting if I made a body of work that took inspiration from Picnic At Hanging Rock, but instead of virginal, vulnerable, Victorian women it was my POC sisters from Western Sydney gathering for a feed. I replaced the traditional picnic for lebanese pizza and argileh (a pipe traditionally used for smoking flavoured tobacco in which tobacco is placed in a bowl and heated with burning charcoal, producing smoke that is drawn through an urn of water that cools it and then into a long tube with an attached mouthpiece) as well as the iconic Hanging Rock with it’s contemporary (and instagram famous) counterpart, Wedding Cake Rock. This made for not only a strong and cheeky series of images but I feel reflects the current climate of determined young women from Western Sydney who continue to be strengthened by their identity.

Gillian Kayrooz. Photo: Jacquie Manning.

Gillian Kayrooz, The Luncheon on the Grass, 2020. Courtesy the artist.

“I thought it would be interesting if I made a body of work that took inspiration from Picnic At Hanging Rock, but instead of virginal, vulnerable, Victorian women it was my POC sisters from Western Sydney gathering for a feed.”

FD: What does it mean to you to be an artist from Western Sydney? How does this rootedness and sense of place inform your practice?

GK: Straight up, I feel so damn proud of being an artist from Western Sydney! I still feel like I am unpacking more succinct ideas of why it holds so much importance to people who live and have a connection to the region, but I believe it stems from its cultural significance, historical importance and the generational strength of our communities. Examples to describe it are as simple as finding comfort in visiting any of the local traditional bakeries in Guildford or Merrylands that have been owned by the same family for generations, or immediately being able to recognise someone from ‘The Area’ just by listening to the tonal nuances in the way they speak. Most importantly it has provided a foundation for me as a young person and artist to be patient, determined, thankful and will always act as a friendly reminder to give back to my community.

In regards to my practice, being able to make work about Western Sydney that breaks away from negative stereotypes, revels in the niche joys of home in the suburbs and extends an olive branch for those willing to listen and engage with our communities, is incredibly important and something that I feel I owe when creating this kind of work.

Gillian Kayrooz, Face Down Ass Up, 2020, silk organza 40gsm, 128 × 193 cm, installation detail, Argileh at Wedding Cake Rock, 2020, Firstdraft, Sydney. Photo: Jessica Maurer. Courtesy the artist.

“I have really enjoyed pushing the limits of what I recognise as photography and how the still image can interact with the audience and the architecture of a space simultaneously.”

FD: You have a multi-disciplinary practice but you started out as a photographer. How has your relationship to photography evolved over time?

GK: In high school I loved creating shoots and taking photos of friends, I feel like that is a nice starting point to reflect on when looking at my current practice. I majored in screen arts at art school, and therefore feel that my practice has foundations both in photography and video. However, in the past year I have really enjoyed pushing the limits of what I recognise as photography (specifically documentary photography and it’s materiality) and how the still image can interact with the audience and the architecture of a space simultaneously.

Gillian Kayrooz, Argileh at Wedding Cake Rock, 2020, installation view, Firstdraft, Sydney. Photo: Jessica Maurer. Courtesy the artist.

FD: Your work features a recurring cast of friends and peers. How did your relationship to your friends/models/collaborators begin? When you’re planning new work, what comes first – the friend or the photo?

GK: Friends and collaborators are integral for an artist's practice and it’s really nice to recognise and celebrate that rather than trying to assume the centuries old persona of the lonesome artist. Everyone who features in my work are friends who I either met in high school, through mutual friends or through community creative programs such as the All Girl Electronic Program that began at the Information and Cultural Exchange Centre (ICE), Parramatta in 2017. I tend to create a blueprint of what I want the work to look like and then leave room for those participating to have the freedom to improvise and enjoy contributing to the work. 

I feel as though I am still learning how to be more confident when directing shoots, but I really enjoy making work when the process feels natural and in the case of this exhibition, creates a chance for people to come together to discuss ideas, broaden their own community of friends and share good food. I don’t think I can finish answering this question without saying thank you to my best friend, Natalie Ang. She has patiently put up with my bullshit and agreed to participate in way too many of my artworks over the years.

Gillian Kayrooz, Argileh at Wedding Cake Rock, 2020, process image. Courtesy the artist.

“Friends and collaborators are integral for an artist’s practice and it’s really nice to recognise and celebrate that.”

Gillian Kayrooz, Project $portboot is Not For Sale, 2017, video still from single-channel HD video with sound. Courtesy the artist.

Gillian Kayrooz, A Tribute to the Area, 2020. Courtesy the artist.

Gillian Kayrooz on residency.

“Being a part of a network where you can support those in your community and they in return support you, keeps me striving as a young artist.”

FD: Who or what are you listening to, watching, reading? How do you stay connected – or how do you disconnect – in these times?

GK: I just finished reading The Courage To Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga, after what I felt like was quite an intense period of self doubt (both in terms of my practice and my personal life), this really helped me settle and find my bearings again. I had lost my patience with reading for a while so it has been really nice to be enjoying it once again and be inspired by some interesting points of research and poignant reflections.

I may enjoy disconnecting a little too much, I began powerlifting just under a year ago and now train 6 days a week. Oddly enough I find both making art and going to the gym to be equally satisfying. This combined with listening to rap or hip hop (usually it’s Kendrick Lamar) is the perfect way to practice being present and focusing on one movement or task at a time, which can sometimes be a little tricky as an artist.

Photo: Supplied.

“My hope is for my practice and career to support and encourage change for the better of arts education and access to the arts for those from lower-socio economic areas.”

Gillian Kayrooz, Gill Was Here, 2017, polyester banner, 300 × 150 × 1000 cm, 2017, installation view, residency showcase, Chengdu Academy of Fine Arts, China. Courtesy the artist.

FD: How have sustained studio programs – like your residencies at Chengdu Academy of Fine Arts and the Sapporo Tenjinyama Artist Studio, ARTnSHELTER, Tokyo, as well as your residency at Parramatta Artists Studios – shaped your practice?

GK: If I was to venn-diagram this question out, the joining factor of all of these studio residency programs would undoubtedly be community. Being surrounded by people (whether they are themselves an artist or not) who are willing to discuss ideas, share stories, offer you advice, question your decisions and in general add a friendly moment of interaction to your day, is what has shaped my practice more than anything else over the past two years. Being a part of a network where you can support those in your community and they in return support you, keeps me striving as a young artist.

FD: Do you have a favourite or particularly memorable exhibition that you saw at Firstdraft, and why?

GK: Absolutely! It was the group show Of All Others curated by Kate Britton. I remember visiting the show when I was 19 as a part of an experimental writing unit in my third year at art school. It was the work of James Nguyen and Sione Monu that changed the way I felt that art could document personal environments, and how that could then be presented and exist in a gallery space. Both works captured domestic settings that were influenced by culture and family, and that completely resonated with me and the work I was making that year. It was one of those beautiful moments that fuels your hunger as a young artist to want to make work and exhibit. After this show and in particular after seeing Nguyen’s hauntingly beautiful shirts suspended from the rafters in Gallery 1, I knew I needed to show in this space.

Gillian Kayrooz studio.

FD: Why did you want to become an artist?

GK: I never questioned why I wanted to be an artist growing up, I spent most of my time drawing, painting and remember ‘being an artist’ was my go to answer whenever the question was thrown at me ( there were definitely some wild back up plans of becoming a tennis player or going to drama school), and ever since I have just tried to make it happen. More recently (particularly in response to the challenges of this year) I would like to be an artist whose work makes contributions to the community. My hope is for my practice and career to support and encourage change for the better of arts education and access to the arts for those from lower-socio economic areas.

James Nguyen, Approximately Fifty white shirts buttoned up and organized in shades of white, 2017, cotton thread and shirts, dimensions variable, installation view, Of All Others, 2017, curated by Kate Britton, Firstdraft, Sydney. Photo: Zan Wimberley. Courtesy the artist.

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