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This work was produced by the artists Shura Chernozatonskaya and MishMash for G.R.O.U.N.D

 

A long table with chairs placed in an orderly fashion stands in a large room whose walls are all painted black. The table is covered by a lace tablecloth. Soft light seeps up from under the lace. The table is crowded with vessels — bowls and vases brimming with cookies, marshmallows, candies, and myriad sweets.  The dinnerware consists in crystals stuck with saran wrap, scotch tape, cottonwool, and foil. A few white cups with saucers are scattered over the tabletop. On a draped platform to the side, a vintage kettle brews hot water.  The room is quite dark. Visitors are invited to sit down, to drink tea, to taste the sweets, and to watch short films on small screens, which are placed all along, on both sides of the table. These films are all about the art of slipping away. Magical possibilities through petit trickery.  

 

In a film projected on a large screen in a separate room, the artists, the curator, the staff of the gallery, and some visitors themselves partake in an endless tea party at the table just described. A door opens briefly to film reels of microbes, hilarious crowds, and snowfall. Finally, the director of the gallery ventures out to the nearest grocery to buy more tea bags, so that the party can go on. 

 

Although it changes the viewer’s perspective, the order of viewing is not prescribed.