chinatown souvenirs (on not knowing)
Mandy Ridley's recent exhibition, Chinatown souvenirs (on not knowing) shown by the Institute of Modern Art (IMA), was an extension of an ongoing project for the artist. In an inspired move, Ridley chose to hold this Brisbane exhibition at an 'offsite' venue located a short walk from the IMA in Chinatown proper; the space was a vacant shop in an arcade next door to stores selling Chinese silk and cooking ingredients, amongst other things. Showing the work away from the culturally charged context of the IMA proved to be successful on many levels: in terms of the challenge it issued to the gallery goer to wander outside the safety of the white cube, and importantly for the opportunity it allowed Ridley's unique work to more readily and honestly engage at a grass roots level with the aspects of Chinese culture she seeks to investigate. The painting/sculptures that make up Chinatown souvenirs explore familiar territory, insofar as they examine the cliched accidental fascination for the East, the romanticized and theorised exotic 'other', while at the same time extending the dialogue beyond being mere confessions of a Sinophile with a postmodern conscience. lt would be easy to read this work as ironically kitsch, yet this would be to seriously undermine the intent of the artist. As the exhibition title intimates, Ridley sourced the subject matter of these recent works in souvenir stores in Chinatown. The first pieces, which lead to the conception of (on not knowing) as an exhibition, emerged after a visit to Chinatown in Sydney where the artist purchased a tiny pair of children's silk Chinese slippers. The work that grew from this seemingly innocuous purchase stemmed from the artist's