Homemade candlepin bowling lane by Heather Van Winckle will be installed at the Muncie Mall from October 26th to November 4th, 2018.
PlySpace completes the Fall 2018 Residency Term projects with a homemade candlepin bowling alley by resident artist Heather Van Winckle at the Muncie Mall. The bowling project, Main Stream, will be located inside a vacant storefront at the mall (near JC Penney and across from Country Charm) and will be open to the public during select times from October 27th to November 4th, 2018.
Main Stream explores the game of bowling as an all-American pastime in an all-American location. The game of bowling is unique in that it can be learned by almost anyone at any age and only requires skill to knock down all of the pins at the end of the lane. With Main Stream, the game is reimagined as a short-length candlepin bowling lane with a soft wood surface which will take the impression of the ball after each roll, making it more difficult to roll the ball straight as the games progress. The ball used is small, only 2.5 lbs, and is easy for anyone to roll, though the lane may become difficult to navigate. The homemade lane features a built-in ball return and pin reset, bringing the game back to its simple roots, this time with an artist’s twist.
The public can participate in 3 different ways and is encouraged to stop by the Main Stream storefront, located across from Country Charm, to learn more about PlySpace, participate in the project, and meet the artist.
Open Bowling Times
The bowling lane will be open to Muncie Mall patrons and curious community members alike. Times will also be posted at the storefront, and there is no fee to bowl. Children should be supervised by an adult.
SATURDAY 10/27 | 12-4 PM
SUNDAY 10/28 | 12-3 PM
MONDAY 10/29 | 4-8 PM
TUESDAY 10/30 | 12-4 PM
WEDNESDAY 10/31 | 4-8 PM
THURSDAY 11/01 | 12-4 PM
FRIDAY 11/02 | 4-6 PM
SATURDAY 11/03 | 5-9 PM
SUNDAY 11/04 | 12-3 PM
Bowling Parties
The lane will also be open for themed bowling parties hosted by the artist on two special nights. Participants can bowl a few times or hang around for the entire party.
DEBATE NIGHT
10/27 | 6-9 PM
"Throw" your support towards the hottest issues affecting us all these days. Come any time and stick around. Each hour we will tackle a different topic. There's no room for gray area here. Long standing feuds WILL be put to rest.
CHANGE THE STATION
10/28 | 3-6 PM
Don't like the vibe of this party? Change it with a strong bowl. We'll kick it off with some jams and you can play to keep the music on, or change it out for something else. Throw a strike, and you get to choose what's next. It's like a choose your own adventure party in your parent’s basement plus bowling!
League Nights
The lane will be available for teams of 4 to compete in candlepin league play. Each team will battle for one hour against a second team, and the highest score wins. To participate in the league, up to 6 teams per night can RSVP to hello@plyspace.org to reserve a space, first come first serve. Game play is free, but teams who miss their reservation may have to forfeit their game. No experience with bowling or league play is necessary to form a team!
FRIDAY 11/02 | 6-9 PM
SUNDAY 11/04 | 3-6 PM
About the artist:
Van Winkle is a project-based, interdisciplinary artist who received her MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute with major focus in sculpture. She is interested in the nuances of American culture and the definition of “normal” social behavior. About this project, she writes, “Consider ‘normal’ as the deepest set tracks in a field we all walked through. All of us took our individual footsteps, sometimes choosing a path others had laid, often deviating either on purpose or without thinking onto untouched soil. A society full of edge-cases still forms a path somewhere in-between. Even if that line truly represents no one person, it represents us collectively. Main Stream examines the ways in which we continually shape our society to either reinforce or deviate from the paths trekked before.”