Anna Madeleine

Anna Madeleine - Indonesia

"The residency was a fantastic experience and I felt extremely well supported from Asialink and my host organisation."

Studio shot of mosquito nets work in progress, by Anna Madeleine.

The aim of undertaking a residency at Common Rooms Networks Foundation in Indonesia was to develop new installation and experimental animation work influenced by traditional Southeast Asian shadow puppetry. The proposed outcome was an immersive installation that explores cultural, artistic and scientific perceptions of anatomy and the body.

For this project, I was interested in how moving image can activate larger installation spaces, by using the simplicity and scale of shadow puppetry techniques. My goal was to experiment with how analogue projection of light and shadow might be combined with newer media to create immersive installations.

I chose Indonesia as my host country so I could research Wayang – traditional Javanese theatre performances using shadow puppets. The dramatic effects of Wayang, its use of light and shadow to achieve scale, and its unusual approach to storytelling, provided a framework on which to experiment with my ideas.