A message from Jane Scott
Sculptural practice stretches from the present back to the furthest reaches of antiquity. It is often the primary source of our understanding of cultures long past; sometimes the only source. Its role within these cultures, as with our own, is multifaceted, ranging from the slightest elements of decoration to sacred objects, from representations of the mighty to the most basic and humble aspects of existence. It is a means of investigating and reimagining the world. Sculpture’s unique status as the most material of the arts, its capacity to be there in a way that painting, music or dance cannot, reserves it a place at the forefront of aesthetic experimentation.
The sculptors in this exhibition continue this dialogue between tradition and innovation. The materials employed in these works cover an extraordinary range of materials, both synthetic and natural, and the themes and objectives these artists pursue is equally diverse. A number push at the boundaries of their practice, challenging us to reconsider what sculpture is, what its objectives might be, and where its limits might lie.
In the film Castaway, the sole survivor of a cargo plane crash learns to survive on a remote tropical island. Amongst his first acts is the creation of a sculpture of sorts, smearing a rudimentary face in blood onto a basketball. It becomes his companion, witness to his hopes and fears, an essential aid in warding off the madness that isolation can induce. A the end of the film, he returns a package- his sole piece of surviving freight- to its sender, whom we guess to be a sculptor. In these details the film makers, practicing a very modern art, pay homage to the most ancient of the plastic arts, as a practice that makes us whole, and as artifacts to be preserved.
In an age when many look toward the future with uncertainty, the art of the ancients reminds us of the continuities of the human project; the artifacts of diverse cultures reveals the wealth of our imagination; while our own sculptors give us new perspectives on the present.
In this, the 11th year of the Yering Station Sculpture Exhibition and Awards, we must congratulate all involved for their dedication and commitment to showing the work of some of the country’s finest sculptors in this splendid
Jane Scott
Executive Director, Regional Arts Australia
Titania Henderson
This abstract Sculptural Installation deals with the white Salt Lake Pans and the Ancient Geology in one of the most remote parts of the Western Australian desert.
The barren landscape is imbued with purity, silence and a blinding whiteness, which I have captured in my work.
TITANIA HENDERSON 