The printing of weeds was part of a larger work originally called 'Dispersal', made up of about 50 monoprints of weeds on the inside of business envelopes.
I wanted to exhibit this work in a local group exhibition 'Tightrope' that had an environmental theme, but 'Disperal' was too large. So I reworked my ideas to present a smaller work and reworked artist statement that reflected the theme more precisely.
The new work consists of 8 prints spaced on the wall into an area 1 metre x 1 metre. To me, having only a few prints can have less of an immediate impact (I love repetition and making multiples), but the intimacy of the smaller work does beckon the viewer to look closer at the detail in the prints.
Sometimes its a challenge to rethink my ideas about my work merely to comply with display requirements, but on reflection, perhaps those challenges are a good thing.
For those living in Brisbane or South-East Queensland, here are the exhibition details:
'Tightrope"
Location: Pine Rivers Gallery, Strathpine
On until 4 August, Monday to Saturday 10-4
I'll be at the gallery on Wednesday 13 June running a workshop on Drypoint printing with a pollinator theme.
There's some really interesting works that caught my attention including sculptures by Mary Barron and Kym Schoenberger and a video work by Deborah Eddy.
My artist statement:
Exotics. Aliens. Weeds. There are many ways to describe those plants that pop up in places where we don’t want them. We continuously uproot and poison our urban landscapes to rid ourselves of these spontaneous opportunists. But perhaps we should pause and take a closer look to appreciate the important role of weeds in revegetating contaminated city spaces and providing habitat for connected species such as pollinators.
'A Second Glance' seeks to readdress the imbalance and elevate the image of the garden weed. The often unnoticed elegant patterns within a business envelope provide the background to showcase the weeds' hidden beauty and grace.
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| The work 'A Second Glance' on display at the Tightrope Exhibition |
