Geology as material frames the first exhibition for 2022 at the National Parks Wildlife Service (NPWS) Heritage Centre in Blackheath.
Underground features four recognised contemporary artists - Vicky Browne, Simon Reece, Peachey and Mosig - who all live and work in Upper Mountains. Being based in this acclaimed world heritage area offers the inspiration, investigation and source material for much of their practice.
Curator Miriam Williamson invited each artist to develop works in response to the geological environments of their surrounds and its neighbouring regions - a response that could include the mining of resources, environmental impact and the history of fossicking and collections of minerals.
Williamson was first motivated by the stone architecture of the NPWS Heritage Centre for this new exhibition.
"The sandstone walls lining this space inspired me to consider the geological formations that characterise the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area and in particular, the formation of the riches and resources underground formed over billions of years. The structure offered a lead into the development of this concept," she said.
Interdisciplinary artist Vicky Browne was also inspired by the internal stone structure of the centre. Browne has hand-made several hundred 'gold nuggets' to fill small gaps in the walls reflecting subterranean mineral veins or seams in nearby caves and mines. Titled "After the Gold Rush", the individually crafted works also comment on history, excavation, economic value and the status and desire for gold objects.
From an early age Simon Reece fossicked for and collected rocks and minerals and was obsessed with the geological nature of our planet. This has morphed over the years into a ceramic art practice that uses the same compounds and delves into the nature of them and our relationship to them. Underground gives Reece an opportunity to further invest in Blue Mountains rock forms, manipulating local clays with home-made glazes for his large scale 'escarpment' ceramic tiles and stand-alone 'rock shelf' and 'coal' pieces.
Multi-media artists Peachey & Mosig (Rachel Peachey and Paul Mosig) are partners and collaborators, using textiles, photography, collage and moving image to look at human/environment relationships. Their new work explores underground landscapes both real and imagined, inspired by their eclectic collection of rocks and minerals and regular field studies of the Blue Mountains.
There is a wealth of geological material within the Blue Mountains and its surrounds to study and contemplate for artistic purpose. Using geology as material source and media, Underground taps into contemporary conversations on land, environment, climate change, waste, breakdown, reuse, reconstruction of material and to human and environmental systems - a reflection of our current world coming out of unprecedented isolation and social disruption.
Underground is at the NPWS Blue Mountains Heritage Centre at 270 Govetts Leap Road, Blackheath until April 29. Open daily from 9am-4.30pm. Free entry.