Material Witness is a body of work created in the wake of the artist's recent discovery that she is a direct descendant of a Kaurna woman who was taken by sealers from South Australia to Kangaroo Island and then Tasmania in the early 1800s.
Material Witness is centred on a handwoven full-length cloak inspired by traditional forms that depicts the fading night sky. Accompanied by three hand-dyed artifacts constructed exclusively from sustainable wool, found, or upcycled materials. The installation invites reflection on the broken chains of history, memory and identity under colonialism, environmental destruction, and the possibilities of renewal and survival.
Aurora
Photo: David Jones
Aurora Front
Dimensions: 150 x 60 x25cm
Materials: Wool, silk, linen
Photo: David Johns
Aurora Back
Photo: David Johns
Maireener Necklace
Dimensions: 85 x 1.5 cm
Materials: Wool & cotton
Photo: David Johns
Endangered Fan
Dimensions: 30 x 45 x 2cm
Materials: Wool, linen. Paperbark
Photo: David Johns
Encased Collar
Dimensions 32 x 32 x 12cm
Materials wool, silk, bushy Yate flower nuts
Shawl
Dimensions: 150 x25cm
Materials: Wool, silk, linen
Photo: David Johns
Installation set up
