archrival: eleventh hour

‘eleventh hour’ by archrival

‘eleventh hour’ by lucy humphrey and claire mccaughan of the sydney-based collaborative, archrival, was an installation on display at the sydney fringe arts festival. the work is an experiment investigating the creation and ownership of a truly collaborative artwork. the work-in-progress, comprised of steel arches and thread, invites the participants to challenge the unspoken competitive energy within a joint, creative effort as each person helps to form the ‘eleventh hour’ installation. designers, architects and artists working on the project build a creative community through the installation, exaggerating the execution

and exhibition of a more typical creative collaborative project.

the installation evolved within the period of its exhibition; influenced exclusively by the space, viewer and time. the black archways were set within the gallery space by architects, designers and artists, each invited to set the framework of the piece by archrival. the space in which the installation was displayed was once a train workshop. a crucial aspect of the physical group effort for the artists of ‘eleventh hour’ is in the mirroring of past collective production within the space in which it was created. the object-viewer relationship is shaped by an interactive, physical interpretation of the sculptural volume; first, in the piece’s form influenced by the handiwork of the viewer, and second, the sheer size of the work, a sort of threaded, metal maze for the gallery goer.

ground view of project

detailed view of the project material and work in progress

the work being formed

detailed view of knotted string and metal archway

wide view of the work being constructed

the black metal archways and string of ‘eleventh hour’

conceptual drawing of archrival’s prediction of the project at day 10, side view

conceptual sketch of the base installation, or day 1– only metal framing