Colloidal Memories.
Nicola Mousa Bajalia Ii
Exhibition was on view from April 20th - May 7th, 2010
Exhibition Description & Artist Statement
Colloidal Memories. was an installation project completed by BFA Senior Studio candidate, Nicola Mousa Bajalia II, in the Spring of 2010. His work transformed the gallery space into an illusional bedroom, with the central work being a metal-rack bed that housed a TV in its center, constantly rotating a video of a live performance completed by Bajalia at the opening of the exhibit. In the performance, Bajalia shaved his own head so that hair fell onto the bedframe. After his head was smooth, he proceeded to shoot off a cap gun into the air and followed each shot by inhaling the fumes; he then took a clump of hair and added hand lotion, milk, and the used gun cap to the strands, then placed these objects inside an empty milk bottle. The cycle ended when Bajalia recited a phrase evoking a specific childhood memory. Bajalia continued this process until the milk bottle he was filling could not fit any more of the described conglomeration. A closing performance ended the exhibition, as Bajalia “cleaned up” the space by folding articles of clothing and placing them in a nearby dresser drawer, where the hand lotion, milk, cap gun, and remnants of hair lay nearby.
Bajalias body of work is deeply rooted in the ephemeral and transient nature of memory and, in essence, the nature of what makes us human. Bajalia believes that with everyone, there is a creative interpretation involved in the recollection of past experiences and the emotions they conjure up. Through his exploration and manipulation of personal materials and their ability to transcend our spatial relationship with time, Bajalias work becomes accessible from multiple levels.
Creation is often times the translation of memory. But who or what is being translated? Is it the roles of thought and feeling, the language of truth, the truth of language? Our attempts to translate our innermost feelings do no more then relieve us of them by drawing them out in a blurred form, which does not help us to identify them. Bajalias installation, Colloidal Memories., served as the construction of a point of connection, acting as a bridge for the passage between the language of memory and that of creation as well as the truth and fabrication in relation to memory.
At its core, Bajalias installation concentrated on his childhood and his attempt to recall the memories associated with that particular period of time. The installation dealt with the notions of spacial and time-relative relationships that exists between ones self and everything else in this world, both physical and intangible. Bajalias installation proposed the opportunity for the viewer to become truly exposed to their own reflections of past memories, thoughts, experiences and emotions. It was a collective experience that in the end remained as personal and unique as the individual experiencing it.
About the Artist
Nicola Mousa Bajalia II was born in 1986 in Valdosta, Georgia. Bajalia attends Appalachian State University where he was a Bachelor of Fine Arts candidate with concentrations in both Sculpture and Painting. In 2009, Bajalia worked with Tasmanian artist Patrick Hall in an international residency through the Center for Craft Creativity and Design. He also held a solo painting exhibition at the Robert F. Gilley Recording Studio. His work was selected for exhibition in the 2007, 2009 and 2010 Art Expo held at Appalachian State University where he was the recipient of the Plemmons Student Union Purchase award in 2009 and Faculty Selection for best in Sculpture in 2010.
