Artist in Residence Exhibition
Wash House | Saturday 10 August to Saturday 21 September 2024
she – this waadlawarnka [fallen tree] – fell to the ground during winter storms last year:
it is not possible to know her exact age but there is consensus she was growing in this place pre- European settlement invasion:
imagine how many bodies this ancestor tree has sheltered and in turn, how many songs have shaped her own gnarled body:
standing here: you realize the lines on her are not marks: they are canyons:
and all those scores are moving: you can feel that humming when you place your hand on her skin.
it has been said the city expels histories it does not want to face but here, the parklands surround the centre: the stories get caught:
held and linger: there is push and pull between us:
This exhibition is the second iteration of the witness/ tree project established by writer and artist, Jennifer Eadie and dancer, Adrianne Semmens (Barkandji) in 2023. The project considers what it means to authentically bear witness to a waadlawarnka [fallen tree] whose age pre-dates the invasion of Kaurna country. In doing so, the project interrogates individual and collective relationship to place: seeking to disrupt, and (re)connect with, the histories and stories held in Parkland 17 – Tuthangga, Adelaide. The starting point for this current body of work was archival material relating to the parkland where this ancestor tree grew & then fell.
The artists would like to acknowledge the generous support of The Independent Arts Foundation SA, whom we received a IAF Small Grant to create this exhibition.
Image: Jennifer Eadie. Untitled, 2024, photographic print, chalk, gesso. Image courtesy artist.
Temporary Parking Restrictions
Parking on Wearing Street is currently unavailable due to the major riverfront upgrade. The closest parking is beside the Arts Centre and behind the vet and motel, or near the foreshore. As we currently do not have accessibility parking, if you require assistance with access please call Sauerbier House 8186 1393.
