process statement

Your practice is based on processes of reciprocity - can you speak to what this means to you?

Reciprocity is a practice of exchange - to give and receive in a balanced way.

I have been working with processes of reciprocity since my honours year at Sydney College of the Arts in 2015, with Bianca Hester as my supervisor. Since then I have been fortunate to be involved in a number of wonderful programs, committees, yarning circles and residencies which encourage reciprocal partnerships, examine cultural competency and highlight the importance of reflexivity and positionality. These include Catchment Studio, Bundian Way Arts Exchange, Plumwood Inc., The Corridor Project and The Fenner Circle.

Sammy & Uncle Owen Carriage (Walbunja Elder). Sammy first reached out to Owen as Chair of the NSW South Coast Elders Council to discuss her practice of creating work with materials from his Country. Since then Sammy and Owen have formed a close friendship based on their shared respect and love for Country. Photo credit: Stephanie Cobon, 2024.

This continent is made up of hundreds of unceded sovereign lands. As a nation we still struggle with truth-telling and the residue of colonialism exists everywhere. I think for any non-indigenous person living in ‘Australia’ reflexivity is crucial - it is important to be aware of our positioning, to continually address our blind spots, and find ways in which we can listen and be led by the voices of those who have been suppressed by a colonial, capitalist system.

In many ways my approach to practice is a response to the extractive legacy of the Western approach to landscape photography. In my work I am interested in how I might create conditions which facilitate the expression or voice of the place, material or being I am working with. The process in which the work unfolds is unpredictable and not one in which I can anticipate or control. The final outcome feels like a dialogue between me and these co-creators.

There is a feeling tone when the balance is right - and is often associated with a sense of alignment or a visceral sensation such as a shiver down the spine. This process takes time - repeat visits, ongoing conversations, and building a meaningful connection with place.

An essential component of my process is to build relationships or have conversations with Traditional Custodians and other humans (scientists, ecologists, researchers etc.) who actively care for the sites I am working. I do my best to work respectfully - treading lightly, donating profits from artwork sales back to Country, working in alignment with ICIP protocols and NAVA cultural advisor rates, remaining open to how I can continually fine-tune a respectful approach to a place-based practice. I’ve been told numerous times from various custodians to always ‘ask Country’ when working on or with it. To ask and to listen are essential components of a reciprocal relationship.

***Working in consultation with Ngunawal Custodian Tyronne Bell:*** When moving to Ngunawal Country in 2019 I reached out to Tyronne Bell to discuss with him my process of making work with materials from his Country. This initial consultation evolved into a friendship and Tyronne and I have walked Country together many times. A few significant works of Ngunawal Country have evolved from these walks including *Ngunara #1* which was created in early April 2021. We had been walking along the shorelines of Ngungara/Lake George - an endorheic lake which had recently begun to fill with water. The photograph is from a roll of medium format film processed with a jar of the muddy water collected from the edge of the lake and taken home in the back of Tyronne’s troopy. **This work was acquired by Canberra Museum and Gallery and is part of their** permanent exhibition *Canberra/Kamberri - Place & People.*

Tyronne Bell on a post-fire cultural survey of Scottsdale Bush Heritage Reserve in 2020.

Following Sullivans | Learning Country: A short documentary I created while a participant on Following Sullivans | Learning Country - an evidence/data building project were 20 participants where drawn from a wide range of fields, including but not limited to art, music, ecology, environmental sciences, literature, community development, urban studies, public policy to participate in three partially curated walks along Sullivan’s creek. These works were led by respected Ngunawal elders - sharing Ngunawal knowledge and stories of Country of their choice. Guided by this cultural knowledge and generosity of Uncle Wally Bell and Aunty Karen, the participants where invited to collaboratively (re)work their expertise to unearth the water scapes and water connections that existed before colonisation and (re)imagine what might have been.

This project led to the ‘Waterways Country Symposium’ held at the National Museum in November 2022. The 3 day symposium was centred around Indigenous perspectives and explores how the interdisciplinary partnership of science and art can help us creatively re-imagine ourselves as part of waterway communities. The work Water Memory was created for this symposium (a collaboration with Paul Wyrwoll (Institute for Water Futures | ANU Crawford School of Public Policy | Water Justice Hub)). See more about this work here.