FORUM Q

FORUM Q is a creative space conceptualised and designed by local artist Feras Shaheen opening in November 2021.

This initiative is managed by Campbelltown Arts Centre as part of Campbelltown City Council's On Q project and will feature activations throughout 2021/22.

We look forward to seeing you use this space and share your creativity with us here through photos and videos once we open.

From the artist: 

Check 1 2.
FORUM Q is a creative space on Lithgow Street for people to gather, train, and create. The space functions based on your interaction.

You can use the casted, soft floor to break (dance not your bones) or train in other acrobatic forms. Mirrors are there to help you learn choreography or take selfies… or to check if you have tabouli in your teeth. Bean bags are provided to do some light reading about why public creative spaces are important. Maybe use the space to enjoy your regular, sugar free latte with caramel drizzle and extra froth at 120 degrees while you watch some local talent jamming (another word for practicing, not the ‘jam’ the fruit preserves). You can use the space to take creative photos and videos for your social media profile to level up your content creation skills… make sure you tag us all so we can check out your style (@campbelltowncity @campbelltownartscentre @fezshaheen #onqcampbelltown).

I am treating this project as an art installation to inspire, educate and build a street culture within the Campbelltown CBD. The key word for this installation is ‘STREET’. Yes, the literal meaning of street is a public road in a city, town, or village, typically with houses and buildings on one or both sides (I got that from google). The street I am talking about is the intersection where street art, street dance, skateboarding, street food, parkour, street wear and many other forms meet to bond a city or neighbourhood together. While the term ‘Street Culture’ can be very broad, the common values are: originality, creativity, diversity, and flexibility.

Don’t worry - your eyesight isn’t deteriorating, it isn’t an illusion, you are in-fact seeing many squares… yes you guessed it - the design of the space is based on a pattern. This pattern is heavily influenced by ‘Checkered Mosaic’ flooring. In the 15th century, the black and white squares symbolised a person’s good days and bad days, with the goal being to have one extra square tipping the balance in favour of the good in our life. Some might refer to this pattern as ‘checkered’ or ‘checkerboard’ but many other names exist.

This pattern can be found in car racing, chess, technology or those vans canvas shoes you used to wear back in the day (or still wear, the trend is definitely coming back!). My specific interest in this pattern was sparked from seeing it in music media and dance for decades. From viewing it in Run DMC’s music video ‘King Of Rock’ to observing it in nearly half of the street dance events I have attended.

The aim was to include this recognised pattern beside the fluro yellow in a bold, large, 3-dimensional approach, which follows an important principle of street culture and my artistic practice - making a statement. Mic drop… Kidding. Mics can be expensive these days so please don’t drop them.