'They Paved Paradise' Exhibition

The theme for my show was initially about the general development evident around Adelaide and particularly in my home area of Prospect. The replacement of character homes with apartment blocks is in my view regrettable but understandable with Prospect being so close to the city. I am particularly concerned with the effect this development has on wildlife and birds in our area. 

A grand old property was left to go into disrepair and was eventually demolished along with its huge established garden. For example, my piece ‘Wattle Wake’ is about the loss of the Wattlebirds in that garden, the call of which I had woken up to every day since immigrating. A number of my pots in this show are about the razing of that property and the direct effect on its wildlife. We now look on a weed-ridden paddock dispersing weed seeds to all the local gardens. 

I have also made gentle protest pieces at the prospect of a commercial development proposed at the end of my street again involving the removal of all its trees as a part of its construction and car park. Stencilled and impressed leaves on my pots are from those trees. I wonder when it will be compulsory to accommodate incumbent trees in new developments. We are all very quick to condemn rainforest destruction but ignore tree removal in our backyard.