The installation piece "SHADOW CHILDREN" speaks about the unethical practice of child labour throughout the world. The intention of this work is to help bring into focus the suffering of millions of children worldwide who must endure a life of enforced labour and poverty and our often unwitting participation of their circumstances. "SHADOW CHILDREN" consists of a wooden structure that becomes a 10'x10' room with walls made from musty old tents. Visitors enter the stucture and their movements illuminate life-sized silhouettes of labouring children. In order to create space for the silhouette shadows, there are inner and outer layers of canvas cladding. The double layer canvas walls also reduces the amount of natural light inside the room. A series of events happen once the viewer enters the interior space. Motion sensors trigger lights that illuminate the aforementioned silhouettes and they also set off industrial related sounds (clanging metal and machines running). Movement in different parts of the room triggers different sets of sensors. This action of setting off sensors by the viewers is meant to correspond to actions in our daily life that often play a hidden role in the plight of these children - that role being an active member of a supremely consumer driven society. In the center space, suspended from rusty, heavy pulleys and thick ropes is a set of worn and dirty children's clothing. The clothes are arranged in the order of natural wearing as if they were occupied by the body of an invisible child. Each rope is tethered to a cement block which has a spray painted image of some form of industry that incorporates the use of child labour. Examples include a factory, a sewing machine and a pick axe. This section of the room is illuminated by a cold column of directional light, much like the light shone over someone who is being interrogated. The room has 2 clearly marked doors to encourage the viewer to walk across the floorspace, thereby triggering all of the motion sensors. Incorporating the use of musty, old canvas tents, worn out clothing and discarded items from building sites is intended to heighten the terrible conditions of those children caught in an endless cycle of brutal labour and hopeless poverty . ***Please scroll down to view images.***
Photo credits: Susan Chantal, John Maywood, Cynthia Sibley Special credit: Lorraine Swift
