BULAHDELAH artist Carol Archer is heading inland for a unique collaborative exhibition that will showcase the environment.

Part of the exhibition is Carol Archer’s etching titled ‘Kairos’.

Advertise with News of The Area today.
It’s worth it for your business.
Message us.
Phone us – (02) 4981 8882.
Email us – media@newsofthearea.com.au

It is a framed picture, 22cm high and 15cm wide, and consists of black ink on white paper.

‘Kairos’ depicts a lush environment, a creek bed perhaps.

The artist asks you to imagine that you are on a bush track, with a steep slope in front of you.

At the top, several eucalypts, a tree fern, and a small section of a wooden fence are silhouetted darkly against a white sky.

At the bottom of the picture, near where you might be standing, is a bright sunlit rock.

Half-way up the slope, past a strip of deep shadow, the sun catches the fronds of a large bird’s-nest fern.

Close up, the picture is densely worked, filled with a network of intricate marks.

The picture is inspired by the thriving forest recorded in ‘Chronos’.

At the same time, the dramatic contrasts and complex mark making aims to convey a note of gravity.

Carol Archer said of her work, “As the ‘black summer’ fires showed us, the future of such environments is precarious.

“The title of the etching, ‘Kairos’, from Ancient Greek, is intended to suggest that we are at a turning point.

“It means ‘the right, critical or opportune moment’.”

Carol’s work will be on display at the exhibition in Coonabarabran.

The exhibition is now open until mid-June at SPACE in Coonabarabran, and not only celebrates the connections artists across regional NSW have made with the natural world during times of restricted movement, but it provides an immersive experience for everyone through multiple points of connection with the artworks.

The exhibition is unusual as it features works of sound, text and visual artworks by Andrew Hull (Bourke), Jason Richardson (Leeton), Danja Derkenne (Little Forest), Dr Greg Pritchard (Wagga Wagga), Anna Glynn (Jaspers Brush), Kim V. Goldsmith (Dubbo), Vicki Luke (Albury), Carol Archer (Bulahdelah), Amanda Donohue (Lake Macquarie), Clementine Belle McIntosh (Gilgandra), Libby Wakefield (Bowral) and Evelyn Alvarez (Coonabarabran).

In the first stage of the project, six of the artists were briefed to create works that would allow audiences to hear, feel, and even taste the places they’d become familiar with during COVID lockdowns or times of restricted movement.

The soundscapes and 150-word texts produced were then sent to six visual artists to create an artwork in response, without being able to visit in person.

Early in the project’s development, it was agreed that as many people as possible should be able to experience the works created, in turn providing an experience of the environments at their heart.

SPACE gallery director, artist and accessible arts advocate, Allison Reynolds, has worked with the group to provide advice and guidance on creating audio recordings and audio descriptions of the text and visual artworks, as well as providing a range of support in the gallery.

“Art is an experience, and it is so important to me personally and to SPACE and its mission, to ensure all facets of the experience are available to everyone by designing the exhibition with that in mind from day dot,” said Ms Reynolds.

By Marian SAMPSON