Pearl (2024) - Video Installation
“Pearl” 2024
Ocean Soundscape (15m 11s) - found sounds from the Newcastle Baths, room speakers
3 Folk Tunes (7m 11s) - Flute, Piccolo, Bass Flute, Tenor Recorder, Tin Whistle, Baritone Ukulele, Banjo Ukulele, Violin, Glockenspiel, Hang Drum, Tamborine Drum, Voice, Sound Shower
Soft Sculpture (160cm x 152cm x 45cm) - Upholstery fabric, Organza, Satin, Quilt Batting, Cotton Thread, Polyfill.
“Pearl” is a multidimensional sound installation anchored by an interactive soft sculpture of a scallop shell and pearl. It was commissioned by Maitland Regional Art Gallery through support from the NSW Government through Create NSW, to accompany the exhibition of Ron Mueck’s sculpture, “Pregnant Woman”, 2002.
In the presence of Mueck’s sculpture “Pregnant Woman”, I am reminded of memories that are pulled out of the hazy, disjointed fog of my childhood, accompanied by certain sensory memories; the smell of the ocean; the texture of a new found shell; the laughter of cousins at family Christmas picnics at Pearl Beach, on The Central Coast of N.S.W. Every subsequent picnic was a marker of my family’s development and growth, with a pregnancy announced one year and a new baby at the next.
These childhood memories and musings on “Pregnant Woman” are translated into 3 Elements:
Element 1 - is a sound collage of Ocean and crowd sounds recorded at the Newcastle Baths (N.S.W) over several trips in 2024. The sights, sounds and smell of this location take me back to the Pearl Beach of my childhood.
Element 2 - is a recording of three, short instrumental pieces composed and played in the style of my body of work, “Folksy Dreams”. Through my distant Celtic ancestry, I have had a love for Irish folk music from when I was a small child, and today this has evolved to include my love for the sights and sounds of the Australian landscape. Track 1) Sand Castle (2m 10s) - When one builds a sand castle, they are creating something new that will change with the passing of time. When a person is pregnant, they are creating something new that will grow and change with the passing of time. Track 2) Sea Change (2m 31s) - With the birth of every child comes a new beginning for everyone in a family. Like the changing seas, the family is refreshed for a new adventure. Track 3) Beachcombers (2m 26s) - Babies become toddlers and toddlers become children. In my family, when the youngest cousin started to grow we would all comb the beach for sea treasures.
Element 3 - is a giant soft sculpture of a clam and pearl. This element takes further inspiration from “Birth of Venus”, a painting by Sandro Botticelli (Firenze 1445-1510), “Pearl”, explores a complex combination of ideas from life such as; beauty, nature, scale, fertility, safety, comfort, memory, family and the solitude of a baby in the womb.
Artist Statement written with the assistance of David Hankin.