Arboreal
26 October - 15 December 2011
Curators: Rhonda Davis and Andrew Simpson
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Artists
Effy Alexakis Will Ashton Margaret Benyon Stephen Birch Arthur Boyd Iain Brew Margaret Coen Lexodious Dadd Shay Docking Fan Dongwang Stevie Fieldsend Louise Fowler-Smith Michael Gillings Roland Hemmert Hens Heysen Deborah Kelly Rosemary Laing Janet Laurence Arthur Murch Ron Oldfield Axel Poignant Alexander Seton Kate Shaw Garry Shead Patrick Shirvington Jon Rhodes William Robinson Peter Solness Chris Tobin Leanne Tobin Fred Williams Ken and Julia Yonetani and Kasia Zieminksa Fiona Lowry Alexander McKenzie Barayura Mununggurr and Ruark Lewis Chris Tobin & Lexodious Dadd |
Arboreal explores the way trees are more than just biochemical entities but living cultures within their own right and capable of collecting narratives of historical and contemporary importance. The exhibition designed as vignettes, will incorporate the indoor museum space with that of the outdoor Arboretum museum to engage viewers with the different ways we understand and interact with nature
Taking a social history view of art, tree narratives, which have touched diverse and connected themes of exploration, colonialism, exploitation, environmental degradation and indigenous sacred sites and knowledge, are of vital importance to our current understanding of the environmental crisis we now all face.
The changing depiction of the tree over the historical period will be explored in relation to the changing views about national identity. In the current climate we feel contemporary artists have extended the dialogue to make us aware of the importance of protection to safe-guard trees as sacred eco-spiritual objects which is of contemporary socio-political relevance. The exhibition will comprise a variety of media including painting, photography, holography, video and installation art.
Fred Williams (1927-1982), 1963, oil on board,
Macquarie University Collection
Copyright estate of Fred Williams
Photography Effy Alexakis, Photowrite