Kawakawa dreams of a time when the forest returns

​she is patient
she holds her ground
& she waits

she provides homes for insects
she feeds birds who visit her
& in return they bring her other’s seeds

which fall to the ground beneath her

​seedlings grow
under her & around her
​over her & above her

so she recedes
becomes the forest floor
nourishing as she yields

& in a clearing at the edge of the forest a tiny black seed knows it’s time . . .

I have donated Kawakawa Dreaming to an Art & Creative Auction which is raising money to be donated to the Red Cross Australia Fire Relief fund.

The auction is being organised by Ruth Ribeaucourt & will be held on Instagram at Ruth's account @Ruthribeaucourt. I’m going to suggest you follow this link to her page for the latest event update.
The auction is scheduled to run between Jan 10th to Jan 12th 2020.
​
Currently, approximately 250 creatives, from 25 countries, have donated works or services.

It feels good to part of a global event which has the potential to make a difference on the ground (pun intended) &, also to know Kawakawa's dreams can come true.

Please support in what ever way you able

Arohanui
Sal x 

The Cross Pollination series is happily hanging in the company of friends.
Here my 3 works are hanging beside MiSun Kim’s gorgeous ink on paper work & Howard Tuffery’s stunning andesite sculpture. 

Vital Transformations is the name of this exhibition & it is on at 'Koru on Devon' a gallery space, upstairs at 18b Devon St East, New Plymouth.

These 3 works were selected to part of ‘Vital Transformations : Mauri Ora’ which comprises 3 exhibitions held in 3 different locations in the New Plymouth CBD over the month of July. 
​The entire exhibitions feature almost 30 works by as many artists. 

Each exhibition has a different kaupapa (theme) & the works have been curated accordingly. 

It’s a quiet & unpretentious event with a message that is not immediately apparent.

The curator, Ian Clothier, has written an essay for each exhibition which hangs alongside. 
The last two images are of a couple of pages of the essay he wrote to hang with this exhibition & include his interpretation of our works.

It has been wonderful to be part of this exhibition. 
It is wonderful to be in the company of people who feel & think about environmental things with the passion , enthusiasm & love that I feel for the world we live in.

Ian's attention to detail, selection & grouping of works allows each piece the time & space for it's voice to heard.

Land lines is an exploration of what it is to be indigenous to place & a comment about the responsibility which comes with that role.

Land lines is a comment on the attitude toward land & the treatment of land in the modern context, especially regarding the industrial farming practices of rural Taranaki.
The modern context seems to view land as being useful ONLY if it can be somehow made to make, save or hoard money for individuals.

It is a comment about how the geographical & geological boundaries are no longer regarded as significant nor honoured.

It is a comment about how the rivers who originate from the mountain & who remain somewhat protected within the circular confines of the national park are completely disrespected on the other side; they are polluted, their course is altered & their river banks are denuded.

It is a comment about how the songlines have been replaced with landlines.

It is a passionate comment, without aggression but with inconsolable sadness.

Land lines was created to be my entry into the annual Lysaght Watt Art Awards which is currently on til June 10th at the gallery in Hawera.
The LWAW is hosted & funded by the trust & each year there is a theme for the submissions to comply with.
This year the theme was 'Rising'.