'Working at Peartree'

I began the next installation on Easter Monday at Becky and Jaime's place onBurra Creek. This installation has became known as 'Working at Peartree'.

Becky and Jaime have been working on the land for just over a year, removing serrated tussock and planning the revegetation and healing of the land. Jaime chose to leave some dead trees standing to remind us of what was there in 2007 and of the damage that had been done previously. The majority of the original eucalyptus trees were ring barked, their textured skeletons break the place, 'where the land meets the sky'. The land at Burra Creek is suffering from drought and years of over grazing.

Members of our extended family gathering were invited to participate in 'Working at Peartree'.

I find that the conversations happening when people are involved in the cutting of the gauze need to be recorded. Participants link events, insights and memories from their life to the cutting, rolling and wrapping of the gauze. Some of those comments as remembered:
Colin shared a performance he saw in which the performer became hopelessly wrapped in threads after thrashing around, getting more and more wound up just as we can do with problems in life.

Julia recounted as a child, madly running around her large house with unwinding balls of spun wool and her mother Barbara not being at all pleased.
Adair looked through the eye of a camera until the card became full. Adair was standing photographing the group near a dead tree, which was holding the gauze taunt, Adair heard the sound of the scissors amplified by the tree. This reminded me of the fence at Dangar Falls humming in the wind.

Adair then commented on the way the gauze formed strong links between the participants and when wrapped around the trees made them appear flatter.

Sue mentioned her enjoyment of the mindless repetition of rolling the gauze. Alysia added her story of unwinding knitted jumpers to make gods eyes and wishing she could knit to create a jumper.

A changing group helped cut and roll the gauze. Then I asked them to use the gauze on a tree of their choice. Adair was asked to document the process through photographs.

Adair and I discussed her idea of how wrapping the object you were going to draw would teach you about that object giving you a more complex knowledge and understanding to inform your drawing.
Becky wondered about 'what the neighbors might make of it' and the dialogue that might result from their questioning. Sam and Becky took photos on Tuesday morning of 'Working at Peartree' in the isolating fog which filled the gully.

Photographs by Adair Imrie