Of Maori, Indian, and Pacific Island decent, Lucas Artists Visual Arts Fellow Tiffany Singh (Auckland, New Zealand) draws inspiration from her varied cultural backgrounds to create work consisting largely of natural mixed-media-based installation and participatory community building. She has garnered critical acclaim for her use of ceremonial and ritualistic materials gathered from and transcending everyday culture.
Continuing her ongoing investigation into the concept of sacred spaces, in 2013 she created the participatory sculpture The Bells of Mindfulness at Montalvo Arts Center. Working with community groups and in collaboration with rural artisans in western India, she produced an installation of 1000 handmade and fairly traded metal bells and paper cranes suspended from brightly colored ribbons from a persimmon tree in Montalvo’s Italianate Garden. Drawing on the Buddhist tradition of using temple bells as an aid for mindfulness, Singh intended for the installation to serve as a tranquil space for rest and reflection.
Once the piece was completed, she invited members of the public to select a bell from the tree, take it to a space they considered sacred, and send documentation of the new location of the bell. Her hope was that over time, a complex portrait of what sacred space means to us today would begin to emerge.
Listen to Singh discuss her approach to art-making and her work The Bells of Mindfulness in this short video produced by Content Magazine, and then peruse the documentary materials below to learn more in-depth information about the project.
Continuing her ongoing investigation into the concept of sacred spaces, in 2013 she created the participatory sculpture The Bells of Mindfulness at Montalvo Arts Center. Working with community groups and in collaboration with rural artisans in western India, she produced an installation of 1000 handmade and fairly traded metal bells and paper cranes suspended from brightly colored ribbons from a persimmon tree in Montalvo’s Italianate Garden. Drawing on the Buddhist tradition of using temple bells as an aid for mindfulness, Singh intended for the installation to serve as a tranquil space for rest and reflection.
Once the piece was completed, she invited members of the public to select a bell from the tree, take it to a space they considered sacred, and send documentation of the new location of the bell. Her hope was that over time, a complex portrait of what sacred space means to us today would begin to emerge.
Listen to Singh discuss her approach to art-making and her work The Bells of Mindfulness in this short video produced by Content Magazine, and then peruse the documentary materials below to learn more in-depth information about the project.
Image Gallery
Meet the Artist
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Visual Artist Tiffany Singh
Born in New Zealand of Maori, Indian, and Pacific Island decent, Tiffany Singh has focused her artistic practice in New Zealand and India since 2005 and continues to exhibit in both locations. This mix of cultures and aesthetics is evident in Singh’s artwork, which consists largely of natural mixed media based installation and participatory community building. She has garnered critical acclaim for her use of ceremonial and ritualistic materials gathered from and transcending everyday culture; the use of the sacred refers to a multiplicity of meanings as it dates back to pre-Christian times and is found in both Western and Eastern religions symbolized through such objects as the apple, salt, and lotus. Read more about Tiffany Singh on tiffanysingh.com. |
In Conversation
Montalvo’s Associate Director of Marketing Leah Ammon sits down with Tiffany Singh to discuss The Bells of Mindfulness in this three-part interview.
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The Bells of Mindfulness Video Project
San Jose State University Film Production Society created this series of videos documenting the creation of The Bells of Mindfulness. Short segments were released as a series of installments chronicling the different stages of the evolution of the work. Click on the links below to view the individual short videos or watch an edited compilation that summarizes the entire project.
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Partners and Sponsors
The Bells of Mindfulness was made possible through the generous support of the following program partners, exhibition sponsors, and Friends of the Lucas Artists Program:
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Related Press
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Someone Who Inspires: Tiffany Singh
By Susan O'Malley When Donna Conwell, curator at Montalvo Arts Center, told me about Tiffany Singh, a New Zealand artist who was coming to the Saratoga residency to hang a thousand bells in a tree on the property, I knew I had to meet her. I could imagine the visual power of the installation, but loved the thought of the sound of bells moving in the wind. Bells and chimes transport the internal state. They are reminders of time – the bell clock tower in the town square, the buzzing ring of a timer, the meditation bell – these resonant sounds ring in our ears to express the simple fact that we are alive on this earth. Read More >> |
