The Armory Show
Regardless of religion, ethnicity or nationality; we as a species are responsible for the ongoing care for the planet we live on. We have an obligation to our children and the generations that come after us to endeavour to leave this place no worse off than how we found it. As Australia burns, as island nations in the Pacific start to disappear, and as the polar ice caps melt, it feels now more than ever we need to come together as a global community to combat the disastrous effects of a climate crisis.
The work Custodians uses a raging sea as metaphor for the journey we seem unwilling to take. Dark and treacherous, it roars as an obstacle between where we are and where we want to be. Whether the literal obstacle of a person crossing an ocean to seek refuge from war, or the seas swallowing our coasts, to the personal journeys we undertake every day to overcome the challenges that stand between us and our goals. As I painted it, I imagined myself standing on a shore or a boat, gripped by fear, as I consider the journey and challenge in front of me. To step forward risks everything, but to remain stagnant ensures catastrophe.
The scenes overlaying the seascape draw from different personal memories, perspectives and observations. Some reference very specific political and cultural moments, some are imagined, and others are a combination of both. These figures fight and fornicate in an uninhibited tableau; either the pin-balling thoughts of an unhinged artist, or depictions of our world gone mad. While we fight amongst ourselves it will be left to our children to rectify and mend the damage we leave behind.
