Beautiful Green Efficiency: Tree Trunk covered with climbing plants as they try to capture every bit of sunlight.
Entangled vines under the canopy
Beehive Ginger
Smooth Bark Kauri Pine
Fan Palm Canopy
Leaves on the track
Bursts of Colour
A Curtain Fig makes a slow run for it as it bridges a wall
Curtain Fig Detail
View from Cairns Botanical Gardens’ Red Walk looking over Trinity Inlet to the Coral Sea.
Scale Screen 2012 Detail. Photography by Tobias Titz.
The development of Scale Screen occurred over many years. This project was assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body. Scale Screen’s origins are linked to my Bloom Series Home-wares and Furniture range, launched in 2009. From the outset of the development of The Bloom Series, I had always envisioned Pixel Screen (pictured below) to be realised in coated sheet metal.
Pixel Screen part of The Bloom Series 2009. Photography by Jon Linkins.
Through the Australian Council Grant I rationalised the design of Pixel Screen in coated sheet metal to ensure modularity, as well as fabrication and installation ease. Importantly throughout this process I maintained the essential qualities of the original artwork. The streamlining of Pixel Screen however meant the adaption was different enough to warrant a new name. The name Scale Screen comes from the form of the elements that make up the screen. They look like reptile scales (especially Frilly Necked Lizards or Brown Snakes) so the name directly reflects this quality and also references my unique country Australian childhood;
The surface, colour and depth of the Scale Screen project is informed by the skin of Taipan and King Brown snakes. In my hometown of Sharon in Queensland, the remnants of shedded snakeskin on timber joists proves a reminder of the local reptilian residents – snakes rub on the rough joists to break their skin for the process of shedding. Amongst Australia’s most aggressive and poisonous snakes, the beauty of their skin belies their potential danger. I play with the duality of the notions of protective efficiency and deadly beauty as being inherent to Australian native flora and fauna.
In the foreground: Scale Screen 2012 Photography by Tobias Titz
A distant and more acute view of Scale Screen 2012 to the right. Photography by Tobias Titz.
My works are intended to be experienced in space, time and light. This is particularly clear in the development of Scale Screen 2012. The patterns within its surface are 3-dimensional; they are patterns that exist in space – new patterns are revealed and continuously evolve as you walk around the work.
I applied the knowledge I gained through the Australia Council Grant Research and Development to other subsequent commissions. Taking Flight (pictured below) uses the same fabrication techniques as Scale Screen but has dramatic differences in form and concept.
Conceptual Photography of Scale Screen's sister work Taking Flight 2011 (Folded Aluminium wall relief commissioned by Aurecon) directly used the skills and knowledge from developing Scale Screen. Photography by Jon Linkins.
Taking Flight installed in Aurecon's Brisbane Head Office Reception. This work aimed to capture a sense of action and growth; similar to birds alighting from a forest or the flourish of blooms in spring. Photography by Jon Linkins.
Scale Screen 2012 Detail within Trace at Pin-up Architecture and Design Project Space. Photography by Tobias Titz.
I would like to sincerely thank the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body for assisting the Scale Screen project.
My Winston Churchill Fellowship Adventure
My Winston Churchill Fellowship Research took me to Japan, China and Turkey to investigate the origins or (as I put it) the space hidden within the ancient patterns of these cultures. By space I mean:
- physical space (scale, depth, color, dimension, composition)
- non-physical space (accumulated knowledge through history; belief, meaning and intention; culture and way of life; nature and need; technology and local materials; the individual maker’s touch, and contribution)
- and the space of experience (built environment or architecture) in which the patterns are experienced as part of a greater whole.
Therefore my research was very rich and multi-layered, as my focus encompassed not only art, design and architecture but also the essence of the places visited and people met.
The space of experience at The Forbidden City, Beijing China.
Looking through my photographs of the intricate carpets, engravings, metalwork, carving, mosaics, ceramics, and textiles from each of the places I visited, one can only be inspired by the craftsmen and the objects of their making. When you experience them first hand you can feel their life and energy and see the imperfect marks made by their hands. The small discreet deviations from the ordered structure and repetition of the patterns made them human and importantly showed the mark of the individual in the transmission of stories, beliefs and skills from generation to generation, across materials, processes and culture.
Details that make the whole, Hagia Sophia, Istanbul Turkey.
Colours and Patterns of Nature, Colours and Patterns of Place; Oriental Rugs at Liberty of London.
Materials and colors are of the place. They stem from the original natural environment of the time. The artefacts were made from these materials by people out of need in their everyday lives. The primitive patterns experienced record ancient man’s connection and dependence on nature and season. The meaning of the motifs, colors and significance of a pattern subtly vary from country to country, workshop to workshop, and artisan to artisan. There is a strong relation between purpose, material, and technique with place, and the realized form of the patterns.
Beautiful Spatial Bamboo Weaving with Ohashi-san, Beppu Japan.
The relationship between nature, making and beliefs in each of the countries was paramount to understanding their patterns. In Japan in particular patterns were based in simplicity, subtlety and beauty. Within the objects of their craft they ritually captured and used materials and processes that revealed the transient nature of their life and surroundings (the passing of seasons, light in the morning, a spider’s web under a new moon). This revealed their deep understanding of the imperfect and impermanent qualities of space and objects with the passing of time and through nature’s forces.
Very moving and personal experience of Karakami with Toto and Aiko from Karacho.
One of my key recommendations that came out of my research was to Foster further research and practice that reflects our own Australian natural environment and identity through our history, native materials, process and way of life. My exhibition entitled TRACE at Pin-up Project Space in Melbourne, was an opportunity to Explore these concepts in a series of new studies.
Trace maps and connects the underlying conceptual ideas that thread through the practice of Brisbane-based architect and artist Christina Waterson. By physically surveying the origins of her work, the new collection embodies a 3-dimensional ‘trace’, sketch or echo of past trajectories. A softening of material and a simplification of line results in Waterson’s return to essential forms and qualities. Like a stone smoothed by the tidal waters of the ocean, sharp lines soften to tactile curves and arabesques. A palette of materials that range from rubber, leather and felt resonate with a return to artisan values within the traditions of leatherwork, sewing, beading and macramé. A collection of work within the exhibition is informed by Waterson’s recent Winston Churchill Fellowship Research experiences… extract from Trace Exhibition Floor Sheet
The main body of text within this post includes key extracts from my Winston Churchill Fellowship Report.
Hanasho: Flower and Art
Eba unwraps bunch of red roses number...
My favourite from the day: Snow Bells
The best way to spend Valentine’s day is in a Florist! But you have to make sure it’s not just any florist! I spent my Valentines Day at Hanasho in West End, Queensland (Australia). Eba who owns Hanasho is more than a florist. He is an artist; a maker; a craftsman using flowers, and twigs and leaves as his medium. Hanasho also engages with the local community through artist nights and fundraising events, and stocks artworks, jewellery, furniture and constructions from local designers and makers.
Roses especially for the day
Traditional Bunch (Mix of Natives and Protea) rest on Designer Fukutoshi Ueno's Dress Code; a collaboration between Fukutoshi and the esteemed fashion designer Akira Isogawa
I enjoyed the messages of love… the expressions on people’s faces on receiving their flowers…the flowers themselves with their scent and their sublime delicacy; almost like love itself; fleeting and yet so desired.
I had an absolutely beautiful day with Eba and his partner Conny, and all of the clients who return to Hanasho because of Eba’s unique talents and art. Thank you!
Passion fruit Flower
The symbolic importance of the Tulip to the Ottoman Empire is seen within the use of the motif throughout their textiles, ceramics, tile work and rugs in a myriad of patterns formations and variations in the tulip forms. Within the Sufi language the Tulip and its parts have different meanings.
- The colors symbolise God.
- Tulips have a black/dark interior. The structure (from dark interior to colourful exterior) symbolises ‘the tolerant, respectful Dervish who overcame interior evil to become bright’.
- Tulips have six petals symbolizing the Six Articles of Faith. Often within the patterns, though, they are shown with three or four petals as they are drawn from a side view.
- The petals and their configuration in the patterns mean different things. When facing upwards, for example, they represent the Dervish opening arms to the sky praying.
When I visited the Forbidden City in Beijing, I found a motif of the bat (especially used within the sleeping chamber of the Emperor). I found this quite strange because recently there has grown a fear of fruit bats in Australia .
Looking closer I found that the importance of some motifs and symbols in China originate from a Chinese play on words. There are many Chinese characters that phonetically sound the same as key aspirations or auspicious signs within Chinese belief.
Fuyi (or embracing wings) is the most common name for a Bat. The Chinese pronunciation for bat sounds like the word for happiness/good fortune – fu. Therefore when a bat appears in multiples, it signifies prosperity and good fortune. A design of five bats in particular stands for the Five Blessings; old age: wealth: love of virtue; and natural death.
Another example includes the Apple Blossom that denotes feminine beauty. The Chinese word for apple – ping sounds like the word for peace. Therefore giving apples is seen as giving peace; ‘Peace be with you.’ The Chinese character for gold-fish (jin yu) sounds like the word that means ‘abundance of gold.’ Note that the word yu also means jade. Therefore a bowl filled with goldfish (jin yu man tang) means ‘may gold and jade fill your house.’
Beautiful and insightful thank you to my Interpreter and Guide Hui Lin.
Ancient Chinese Folklore holds a deep respect for nature. Natural things (organic and non-organic) were believed to possess an independent spirit. Rocks, trees, animals and even natural phenomena such as mist and rain were regarded as the souls of past ancestors who continued to care for their living descendants. This respect for nature takes form as cultural symbols within Chinese literature, ceremony, art and architecture. Originating from simple marks on earthen and stoneware for everyday life some evolved to form Chinese written characters. Examples of plants and animals and their symbolic meaning include:
- Pines inspire thought of longevity, while Bamboo of supple bending before life’s trouble
- Mulberry of calm filial piety (or a respect for parents and ancestors)
- Birds have a special place as they represent a free soul.
- Chrysanthemum of the charm of autumn and a life with ease.
- Cicada as an emblem for immortality and resurrection, as well as happiness and eternal youth.
- The wild plum of the character of austere winter. In China it is one of the few flowers that bloom in winter so it represents gracious and unwavering character.
While recent reforms over the past century have continued the evolution of these symbols, motifs and patterns, what remains constant is ‘counterbalance’; from the formless (wu) Chinese strive for the formful (yu).
After a long restful sleep (and completely inspired by meeting Toto and Aiko from Karacho) I headed out to enjoy all of the beautiful moments of nature in my immediate area. For me it’s not just nature’s beautiful presence in fauna, and flora and season that inspire me. It is also the force of nature made evident through the changes in the things around us with the passing of time.
What struck me most about Japan, and what is not evident in these photos (of nature in Kyoto City) is the difference in Japan’s nature when placed next to Australia’s. There is an essence; a flowing quality to it; a movement. I believe this is ever-present in Karacho’s Karakami.
kikkō is used extensively throughout Japanese and Chinese crafts. It draws its origin from the carapace of a tortoise. The carapace is the upper part of the shell and has a distinctive hexagonal pattern. The tortoise symbolises longevity because they are known to live a long life.
This pattern is also practically used for Kikkō armour. The armour is made up of small hexagonal plates of steel or hardened leather connected to each other by chain armor or kusari and sewn to a cloth backing. Because it is flexible and folding it is sometimes known as Kikkō tatami dou.
There are many beautiful variations of the Kikkō pattern. These include:
- kasane kikkō ni wa (kasane = repeated: kikkō = tortoise carapace: ni = and: wa = ring)
- kumi kikkō (braided/plaited hexagons)
- hanairi kikkō (a flower placed inside a hexagon)
It has taken me some time to reflect on and prepare this post (and the series of posts) about meeting Karacho and spending time with Toto and Aiko. This is because I had an experience that is hard to put into words. Here is Part 1 of my attempt…
Karacho is Japan’s last maker of Karakami. Karakami is wood-block printed paper. The Senda family have been printing karakami since establishing their workshop in Kyoto in 1624. The tradition, along with 650 hand-carved wooden blocks, have been passed down in an unbroken line within the family for twelve generations. Karakami traditionally graced Fusami screens (traditional sliding doors to open and divide space) but now is made more available through textiles, furniture and tableware at Shijo Karasuma, Cocon Karasuma building in Kyoto.
The karakami Karacho make today continues to preserve and echo the traditional process that is 400 years old. It is within the materials, care/intention, mood and a delicate quiet beauty that the union of motif and washi lives.
The materials all originate from nature.
The washi (wa Japanese shi paper) is made from living trees and bushes. Kyoto washi is known to be of the best quality; it is smooth with natural fibres subtly scattered throughout.
The colour is mixed from natural pigments. Only three pure colours are combined; red, blue and yellow. There is no recipe. These are mixed at the moment of printing. They are mixed with Mica; a shimmering mineral that is ground into a powder for this purpose. The final colour is inspired by a personal moment from the day; like the colour of flowering blossoms seen that morning or the colour of the sky from that afternoon. No two prints will be the same.
The woodblocks or Hangi are mostly carved from Magnolia or Honoki wood (Magnolia Hypoleucaea or Magnolia Obovata). Honoki is a non-resinous wood that has a subtle grain and is not subject to warping and cracking.
The patterns or motifs carved into the Hangi come from many different sources. They are all however carefully considered, and continue to live through Karacho. One of Karacho’s patterns originates from the Alhambra, in Spain ( a place I had hoped to visit on my travels but was too pressed for time). The pattern records the concealment of the mark of Christianity; the cross. The cross was simplified to a circle and square to escape persecution from other religions at the time. The pattern made its way to Japan, on the Maritime Silk Road through traders, as an exported silk yoke previously worn by Christian priests. While that is the origin, in Japan, the circle in this arrangement is an important pattern as it embodies ever-growing, ever-expanding happiness.
Many of the patterns are inspired by and celebrate the beauty of Japanese nature and season. The breath and character of the Dragon in the form of the cloud, the fertile Hyotan (Gord), the hope for longevity of Kikko (the tortoise carapace pattern), the growth and importance of Asanoha (hemp in Japanese every day life through weaving), and Edasakura the cherry blossom in full bloom on branches…
Some of these patterns re-occur in other cultures including China, Turkey and Northern Europe (the Celtic people). In this way they are universal patterns that have transcended time and culture. Each culture has subtle differences in the meaning assigned to the patterns, their application and use,; but all are linked to the exchange of knowledge through trade along the Silk Road.
Just as the materials used in Karakami all originate from nature, they are all linked through the life given by water. And like water Toto and Aiko breathe life and bring together these elements with the contact and touch of their hands. They see their role as breathing life into these elements; the washi, the hangi, the motif, the nature, the colour; through the moment of Karakami.
