Sugarcube: A Public Art Project By Simon Gray

The Art Box Project presents

Sugarcube
A public art project by Simon Gray
Cuba St, Wellington. December 2004 – February 2005

All those visiting Cuba St cafes over summer are invited to participate in Sugarcube, Simon Gray's public artwork for the Art Box Project. Over December and January, thousands of specially printed sugar sachets will be distributed to participating Cuba St cafes. The public are invited to illustrate or write on these sachets as they choose and leave them in the boxes provided in the cafes, to be collected. Gray will then turn the completed sachets into a collective artwork, to be displayed in the Art Box in early February on Cuba Mall (dates TBA).

As the essential part of Gray’s work, individuals collaborate on the Sugarcube project to make an artwork out of the ephemeral; tapping into the idea of artists and writers using cafe detritus to capture brainwaves and visions. As Gray says, “the involvement of other people allows a work to evolve and adds an element of surprise”.

Gray, who has an MA in Public Art and Design, recently moved to New Zealand from the UK, where he was involved in a number of public art residencies and initiatives including the public art event, Open City, in Bristol. Gray collects sugar sachets as a record of his travels and swaps them to build up a collection of sugar sachets from across the world - Sugarcube stems from this obsession.

You can find the sachets at: Fidel’s, Midnight Espresso, Steinburg Cafe, The Purple Onion, Olive Cafe and Plum of Cuba (all on Cuba St). Sachets can also be found at the Wellington Art Centre, Oriental Bay Rotunda. Check the website for updates to the participating cafes list and full details: www.artbox.org.nz/sugarcube.htm

ENDS

The Art Box Project Trust receives support from Creative New Zealand Toi Aotearoa and from the Wellington Creative Communities scheme. And thanks to the cafes supporting the project - these places are places you want to be!

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