I’m standing in a triangular field of native grass, a stones-throw south from where freight rails meet the passenger line in an inner-west suburb. I’m standing next to the last remaining population of remnant Diuris Fragrantissma on earth. The triangle is small – and sits under the shadow of a decommissioned industrial monolith, 250 years ago this species was prolific– its tubers a reliable seasonal vegetable.
Responding materially to local fragmented ecosystems, this installation presents 110 Diuris flowers forged from glass that speak to the shards of broken bottles left behind from when the area was previously used as a municipal dump, while a sonic landscape invites listeners to engage with the fragile biodiversity of the broader Western Basalt plains.
Enter Tussock is a project that pays homage to the decades-long recovery effort that has slowly revived the population, examining fractured landscapes and the tender relationships that emerge from caring for a species on the brink of extinction.
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Indi Jennings is the recipient of the KINGS VCA Graduate Award, 2023.
See the exhibition room sheet here.