Untitled
2005-2006
Medium
resin, ochre and polyvinyl acetate on hessian
Measurements
178.0 × 298.0 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased NGV Foundation, 2006
© Courtesy of the artist
Gallery location
Gallery 9
Level 2, NGV Australia
About this work
Christopher Pease created this work for an exhibition on the environment that explored relationships between Nyoongar and European peoples in south-west Australia. The base is made from resin collected from balga trees, while the cream-coloured circles use ochre sourced from Denmark near Wilson Inlet, an area historically associated with the Minang subgroup of the Nyoongar people. The four horizontal rows of dots represent European seasons, and the six vertical rows correspond to Nyoongar seasons, visually contrasting two different systems of understanding environmental time. The work also considers how seasonal knowledge is shaped by lived experience and is central to cultural adaptation to place. It emphasises how the Nyoongar seasonal system evolved from direct experience of local conditions, while the European model was imposed onto a landscape very different from the one it was designed for.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Perth, Western Australia
Accession Number
2006.419
Department
First Nations Australia
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of The Vizard Foundation