Fly away
2020
- Medium
- colour digital video, sound
- Measurements
- 32 min 27 sec
- Place/s of Execution
- New York, New York, United States
- Edition
- ed. 5/5
- Inscription
- engraved on USB c.r.{fly / AWAY}
engraved in lid of accompany box {fly / AWAY} - Accession Number
- 2023.592
- Department
- Contemporary Art
- Credit Line
- National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased with funds donated by July Cao, 2023
© Derek Fordjour, Nick Lehane and Petzel Gallery, New York, All Rights Reserved - Gallery location
- 18th Century Decorative Arts & Paintings Gallery
Level 2, NGV International - About this work
-
Ranging from painting and sculpture to installation and performance, Derek Fordjour’s exuberant and multi-layered works feature athletes, performers and other archetypes central to cultural rituals and communal rites of passage.
Inspired by the Bunraku style of Japanese Puppet Theatre, Fly away originated as a live puppet show co-created by Fordjour and award-winning puppeteer Nick Lehane. Depicting a fable-like narrative of a man’s quest for mastery, it follows a cycle of wins and losses as the central character attempts a series of skills such as football, horseriding and music. With a visible team of puppeteers included in the frame, the work raises questions around autonomy, control and dependence.