From responding to a call out for local artists to attracting over 300 people to her first solo exhibition, it’s been a whirlwind start to the artistic career of Wyndham artist Melissa Lazaridis.
Lazaridis debut exhibition, Synaptica, proved a huge hit on the weekend of March 16 and 17 at the The Annex in Werribee, with her artwork and installations exploring the inner-workings of the brain, stimulating the brains of those who witnessed it.
She even curated a particular playlist to stimulate certain sections of the brain; making candles with scents that evoke memory; the bowls themselves were an imprint of her own hand resembling touch.
Lazaridis describes Synaptica as a memoir of determination and struggle and her journey to bring it to fruition is certainly testament to that.
After The Annex launched an EOI program which asked for local artists to use the space, Lazaridis submitted an application which was eventually accepted.
The resulting work is deeply personal first-hand account of living with people with brain connectivity disorders and her own pursuit to understand
brain plasticity and inspire the experience of connection.
“Each component of the installation represents love and
dedication around the notion of connection and the
consequences of disconnection,” explained Lazaridis who expanded on what she meant by connection in regards to the brain.
“We all have a complicated tangle of neurons, dendrites and
axons activating synapses to spark and communicate. This forms
a remarkable mesh of energy. There are millions of connections circuiting along familiar and
new pathways that create an intricate map of who we are as
individuals, and how we operate in this world.
It seems that all life forms instinctively search and seek to
connect.”
The fact 340 people came to see her exhibition, many of them strangers who were keen to share their own stories and experiences with her, bears this out.
Cade Lucas.
