Australian Serendipity III - Sculpture Bermagui
You'd think that by now the serendipitous events have to stop, right? Well, almost. This is the last one, I promise. It's about sculptures and it's near the sea, so you will love it, trust me.
Well, you will love it if you are as keen on sculptures as I am. One of the big art shows on my bucket list is 'Sculpture by the Sea', which is staged annually at two Australian locations, Sydney and Cottesloe, Western Australia. The Sydney one takes place in November - which was not my travelling time - and the Western Australian one took place in March - which would have been fine but unfortunately WA was not on my itinerary.
That meant I had to miss out, but yet again my hosts came to the rescue and told me about a similar event, albeit on a much smaller scale, that is held annually in Bermagui at the NSW coast in March. And lucky for me, Bermagui was really close (as in 'European-close' - not 'Australian-close' as I explained in my previous post) to where we were staying. If you are wondering about the town's un-English sounding name, the explanation lies in its origin in an extinct Aboriginal language with the possible meaning of "canoe with paddles".
That would be an apt name as Bermagui is a lovely coastal town with fantastic opportunities for game fishing in the ocean but also all kinds of water sports in the safe estuaries along its coast. It has a lovely harbour that doesn't just house fishing boats and yachts but also seals and stingrays.
The coastline is spectacular, the town itself is built at the South End of Horseshoe Bay, a several kilometres-long sandy beach. The Main Street leads down to Dickinson Point headland and foreshore and it is in these magnificent surroundings, right at the water's edge, that the town puts on its annual sculpture exhibition.
The exhibition attracts experienced (both Australian and international) sculptors but also acts as a launching pad for emerging talent. This year it encompassed 102 pieces, exhibited outdoors as well as indoors, with dimensions as varied as the materials used.
The smaller, more fragile, pieces - that had to be protected from the elements - were displayed in the town's community centre. The monumental pieces, as well as the ones that demand an outdoor setting, were installed in the above mentioned parkland between the town and the ocean. The outdoor settings range from picturesque to spectacular. In fact, this is what has always attracted me to the 'Sculpture by the Sea' events as well as sculpture parks: using nature as the gallery space. Curating sculptures in a natural landscape must be one of the most rewarding things to do.
More than in an inside venue, in the open air the artworks themselves dictate their setting. There are those that will look perfect in a dramatic setting, others will need a quiet background as they might be dramatic themselves. Some might look good with trees or some shrubbery, others will look best on a patch of grass while yet again others might need to stand on stone or concrete or be suspended from or attached to trees.
Placing them you will need to decide if they are a part of the scenery or if they are an addition. If you find this confusing just have a look at the photos in the picture gallery below and you will understand what I mean. The 'Fisherman' - a steel sculpture by Will Jardine - obviously needs to be near the shore (as an addition) while the abstract white steel sculpture titled 'Echoes' by Rhonda Castle and 'The Snatcher' by Barak Zelig in Corten steel look best with a horizon line behind them, merging with the landscape.
Stephen Hogan's 'The Fleet' needs the sea as a backdrop. The animal sculptures are best viewed looking down, whereas abstract pieces like Simon Pankhurst's 'Onward' are beautiful against the blue sky and invite you to look up.
Sam Anderson's 'Gypsy of the Deep', a 7-metre sculpture of a whale shark in recycled and galvanised steel, drew so much attention to itself that the surrounding parkland didn't really matter. You just wanted to go up close and have a real good look what this magical creature was all about.
My favourite piece was the steel sculpture titled 'Terra Nullius' by Melbourne artist David Doyle. It immediately reminded me of Australia's indigenous peoples- this line of upright spears and shields was a message from the country's past. In fact, the artist's reflections are "..that Australia was not a Terra Nullius (an empty land).." when it was discovered by settlers. The sculpture is also a statement "..that what happened can not be changed - but it can be acknowledged."
In fact, as I noted in my post about the Gippsland Art Gallery, acknowledging
Aboriginal art and culture and including it in events has become more prevalent. As part of the events programme of 'Sculpture Bermagui', a member of the local Djiringanj Aboriginal tribe made an installation and held a 'smoking fire and sharing stories' event on the headland. I think this might just be the right way forward to introduce Australia's ancient cultures into a contemporary artistic framework and give them the importance they deserve.
I always find sculptures have to be seen not talked about to be appreciated, so I now invite you to click through the picture gallery below and enjoy the works.
Photography by Sophia Garner
