SMOKIN’

A love of red dirt places such as Central Australia and the tip of Cape York Peninsula lies behind the creation of this piece. I have long harboured a desire to work with terracotta clay to express my feeling of connection with desert country landscapes and such remote regions as Arnhem Land. Living in Bamaga twenty years ago, I became familiar with the changing seasons and annual burning season as Aboriginal people cared for their country. This essential practice supports Aboriginal culture and provides vital environmental care of the land. During the dry season cool burns, it seemed as the entire country was smoking. Revealed were large areas of rich red soil, white-grey ash and blackened tree butts, the green canopy intact.

Working with this delicious clay, I considered the impact of colonisation on Australia’s wild places. I was not aware until a trip to Uluru of the devastating effects of introduced grasses such as Buffel and Rhodes by the cattle growers on the environment. Both grasses originated in South Africa. They are both invasive. Rhodes has been declared a weed in some states. Buffel grass has been blamed by locals for the intensity of recent bush fires in the Northern Territory. It invades burnt country quickly after a fire before the native species can regenerate. In many places the iconic spinifex grass is slowly disappearing as the buffel takes over, threatening fragile ecosystems.

In the firing process of Smokin’, I have used Rhodes grass hay along with sawdust, mango leaves, salt and wood offcuts from my husband’s shed to barrel fire this pot. Although it burns and turns to ash quickly, the Rhodes grass has left its mark on all the pots in the barrel.