Tracing the Edges
A participatory creative space by Munimba-ja artists Libby Harward and Lexie Abel, developed in response to skeletons at Redcliffe Art Gallery.
Tracing place, time and connection
Tracing the Edges invited visitors to think about their own position within Country, time and place.
The work began with a simple question:
What happens when we stop and think about everything a place has seen — what has come before us, what might come next, and the mark we make while we are here?
Developed by Lexie Abel (Wiradjuri) and Libby Harward (Quandamooka), the creative space explored ideas of layering, tracing and interconnected time. Visitors were encouraged to experiment with line, silhouette and repetition while drawing inspiration from natural elements found on Kabi Kabi Country, the shorelines and waterways of the Redcliffe Peninsula, and the marks found in historical maps. Tracing the edges - wall text
A studio designed to keep changing
Rather than creating a finished artwork that visitors simply looked at, Munimba-ja designed the studio as a space that could continue to change as people used it.
At the centre of the room was a large two-tone wall mural based on an abstract interpretation of the Redcliffe shoreline. The two colours differentiated land and sea. Visitors could trace directly onto the wall with pastels or work with another person and use light to project and trace silhouettes at different scales.
Over time, the traces accumulated. Bodies, shapes, lines and marks layered across one another, allowing the mural to become an evolving record of the people who entered the space.
“Time is layered and interconnected all at once.”
Making, tracing and looking differently
The studio also included an independent making activity using window decals and cardboard templates. Visitors could trace shapes onto printed maps and then either take their work home or add it to the evolving display. The imagery included plants, map elements and everyday found objects, extending the idea of tracing the edges of both landscape and experience.
ADD Image — participant using stencil / tracing activity]
The design also considered light and shadow as part of the experience, including warm lighting and layered silhouettes to reinforce ideas around time, memory and movement. Skeletons studio design by Muni…
Extending the work through workshops
The project extended beyond the gallery studio through Tracing the Edges — Mark Making for Ground Mural, a workshop led by Lexie Abel.
Working with ochre, charcoal and stencils, participants created an ephemeral ground mural while engaging with Kabi Kabi language words provided by Kabi Kabi man Lyndon Davis. The workshop invited young people to trace, mark, shade and blend as they mapped a story directly onto the ground in response to skeletons.
[Image — ochre workshop / ground mural]
A space for experimentation
Tracing the Edges asked visitors to explore the edges of imagination, connection and identity — to think about the Country they walk on, the stories already held there, and the marks they choose to leave behind.
Project details
Artists: Libby Harward (Quandamooka) and Lexie Abel (Wiradjuri)
Project: Tracing the Edges
Venue: Redcliffe Art Gallery
Exhibition response: skeletons - Judy Watson
Commissioning body: City of Moreton Bay
Cultural contribution: Kabi Kabi language words provided by Lyndon Davis for the workshop
Creative development: Munimba-ja Arts Centre
Public Art & Commissions
Munimba-ja develops First Nations-led public art, exhibition responses and creative commissions through strong relationships with artists, community and place.
