Rachie Campbell

I was thrilled to be selected to create a bespoke, seductive LED screen art commission for GUTHEALTH’s 45 mins set on the Wellington Airport Ngā Taniwha Stage at CUBADUPA.

‘Gut Health are a six-piece ensemble from Naarm/Melbourne whose sound blurs the boundaries of guitar music, weaving hypnotic dance-punk, no wave and chaotic noise with nightclub-inspired soundscapes…Sonically daring. Visually adventurous. Hypnotic art-punk with an edge’’ Concord: world’s leading independent music company

Images credit: Sambath Ouch (@sambath)

When I looked them up, I saw that we were visually aligned and got excited about the opportunity to work on the commission, as we both use provocative visuals featuring female subjects. When I virtually met with talented lead singer Athina Uh Oh (who is also a visual artist), we bounced ideas off each other using their visual concept board.

Part of the design brief was to bring to life women’s archival footage and imagery, which led me on a journey of research and discovery through archival libraries around the world. This included using the Open Access collection at The Met Museum New York, which offers over 492,000 images of public-domain artworks free for unrestricted use.

I also wanted to incorporate local material from the National Library of New Zealand and selected the striking image “Amy Kirk yawning” by Mt Victoria resident Robina Nicol, a skilled amateur photographer who was also a signatory of the seminal 1893 Women’s Suffrage Petition which was the final, critical push that led to New Zealand becoming the first self-governing country to grant all women the right to vote. Was great to bring this amazing Wellington 1899 picture to life through video art.

Was a joy also to rediscover my old black and white 90’s visual diaries and photography contact sheets from my 6th form photography studies at Aotea College in Porirua. I love the way analogue photography paper and exposures warp and create high contrast—so different from iPhone photography of today. I used this style in the video art commission, bringing each contact sheet to life.

It was also amazing to collaborate with my oldest college friend and original muse, Sarah Bleasdale; a dancer, choreographer, movement director and drag king based in Berlin. She happened to be back visiting while I was working on the commission, which felt like perfect timing. Together, we created a series of close-up, orange-toned “security camera” style visuals through a photo shoot, which were then used in the show.

Typography was also a major concept from GUTHEALTH’S Visual Concept Board, I incorporated their song titles and song lyrics into the art work which also gave each song different personalties and meaning.