Cellular Level : Watercolour Ground, water colour paint, gold and copper leaf on canvas- Mithika and Gunggari woman
This work depicts the growth rings of a mussel shell under a microscope, we are looking at a shell at its cellular level, this is the most fundamental level of its structure, its cells. Cells are the fundamental unit of life and the smallest unit capable of reproducing itself. I wanted to make the correlation between the Cellular Level of the shells that exists in our Middens and the fundamental level of our culture, our people and the ability we have as individuals to work collectively to reproduce and grow all our histories after colonisation. This theme extends like a thread through all other works.
In her work, Clea, a proud Mithika and Gunggari woman, transgresses messages of middens and their scientific insights, their complex stratums resembling layering structures embedded throughout our historical narratives, but most symbolically how they recognise preserving the legacy of the original custodians who have stewarded this country for generations upon our traditional lands.
Pairing different disciplines and materials, Clea’s work speaks of First Peoples’ value systems and epistemologies, and how they differ from settler/colonial values by using gold, copper and silver leaf to alleviate her work centring the growth rings and their meanings on freshwater mussels. The work acknowledges the profound influence of Clea’s unique Channel Country, characterised by a vibrant palette of reds, yellows and browns shapes all things born from its rich soils and fresh waters.
This work depicts the growth rings of a mussel shell under a microscope, we are looking at a shell at its cellular level, this is the most fundamental level of its structure, its cells. Cells are the fundamental unit of life and the smallest unit capable of reproducing itself. I wanted to make the correlation between the Cellular Level of the shells that exists in our Middens and the fundamental level of our culture, our people and the ability we have as individuals to work collectively to reproduce and grow all our histories after colonisation. This theme extends like a thread through all other works.
In her work, Clea, a proud Mithika and Gunggari woman, transgresses messages of middens and their scientific insights, their complex stratums resembling layering structures embedded throughout our historical narratives, but most symbolically how they recognise preserving the legacy of the original custodians who have stewarded this country for generations upon our traditional lands.
Pairing different disciplines and materials, Clea’s work speaks of First Peoples’ value systems and epistemologies, and how they differ from settler/colonial values by using gold, copper and silver leaf to alleviate her work centring the growth rings and their meanings on freshwater mussels. The work acknowledges the profound influence of Clea’s unique Channel Country, characterised by a vibrant palette of reds, yellows and browns shapes all things born from its rich soils and fresh waters.
This work depicts the growth rings of a mussel shell under a microscope, we are looking at a shell at its cellular level, this is the most fundamental level of its structure, its cells. Cells are the fundamental unit of life and the smallest unit capable of reproducing itself. I wanted to make the correlation between the Cellular Level of the shells that exists in our Middens and the fundamental level of our culture, our people and the ability we have as individuals to work collectively to reproduce and grow all our histories after colonisation. This theme extends like a thread through all other works.
In her work, Clea, a proud Mithika and Gunggari woman, transgresses messages of middens and their scientific insights, their complex stratums resembling layering structures embedded throughout our historical narratives, but most symbolically how they recognise preserving the legacy of the original custodians who have stewarded this country for generations upon our traditional lands.
Pairing different disciplines and materials, Clea’s work speaks of First Peoples’ value systems and epistemologies, and how they differ from settler/colonial values by using gold, copper and silver leaf to alleviate her work centring the growth rings and their meanings on freshwater mussels. The work acknowledges the profound influence of Clea’s unique Channel Country, characterised by a vibrant palette of reds, yellows and browns shapes all things born from its rich soils and fresh waters.
