Pieces from Enderby’s Cardiff Miller Art Warehouse will be showcased in Milan, Italy, this fall.
Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller are the artists behind five installations at the art warehouse. The space invites visitors into immersive environments built around sound, video and other media.
The Escape Room, The Killing Machine, The Marionette Maker, The Carnie and The Storm Room will be featured at Pirelli HangarBicocca, a contemporary art institution in Milan.
Cardiff said she was excited to see the works showcased at the European venue.
“It’s an incredible amount of work begins the scenes,” she said. “We’ve never had such a major exhibition as what’s coming up this November.”
The Grindrod couple found the warehouse in Enderby about five years ago.
Cardiff said it was perfect.
“We always wanted to create a museum of our own, and because George and I are both from rural background, we understand how difficult it is for rural people to make it to the city to see major shows.”
She noted the building’s high ceilings and large floor area, as well as its proximity to their studio in Grindrod.
“We grew up in small towns … so we re very comfortable with Enderby,” Cardiff said.
The five installations will be taken down and shipped from Enderby to Italy in four 40-foot containers. Cardiff said her team will work in Italy for about five weeks before the exhibition opens.
Cardiff said ideas can come at unexpected times.
“You’re reading a book and then it makes you think about this and that, and then you start sketching in your notebook, but pieces change completely one we start working,” she said.
Cardiff added that the bathtub is arguably the greatest place for ideas.
“When you’re relaxed, sometimes your subconscious brings up things that you’re thinking about, things that I never thought of in that way.”
Cardiff encouraged people who are not well versed in art to visit the warehouse and said attracting local visitors has been challenging.
“Sometimes people are afraid of looking at art because they don’t want to feel stupid or they don;t know what it is,” she said. “A lot of times, older people survive, like people in their 90s because they’re curious and they’re open to many different things.”
Cardiff Miller Art Warehouse is at 507 Granville Ave. in Enderby and is open Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The installations will be taken down in November and the warehouse will close while new installations are prepared.
