No 3 reef
2023
Medium
seagrass (cord), raffia, cotton, shells, synthetic dye
Measurements
41.0 × 150.0 × 114.0 cm (overall)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased with funds donated by Linda Herd and Canny Quine Foundation, 2023
© Paula Savage, courtesy Moa Arts
Gallery location
The Ancient World
Level 2, NGV International
About this work
Mualgal artist Paula Savage, from Moa Island in the Torres Strait, is known for contemporary works that draw on the traditional material practices of her cultural heritage. Through these, Savage honours her ties to the Kubin community in which she lives, reflecting on both tradition and transformation in island life. As she explains:
There are three reefs off the coast of Lag Mua. The first, and closest, is Dollar Reef. It is the deeper one and most of the food comes from this one – crayfish, fish, dugong, turtle and clams. The second and third reefs are further out and sit up higher. In the old times we went fishing and collecting in canoes and carried seafood in baskets. Now we got dinghies and outboards and eskies. These baskets are more about sea life – the coral and sponges under the water.