Art beat
A DAM GOOD COLLECTION OF WORKS Ceramics, art, textiles and more, all inspired by the beauty of a heritage-listed Darwin attraction, are the focus of a new exhibition that celebrates our stunning landscapes and wildlife
About 70km east of Darwin sits a site that demonstrates the ecological impact of the wet and dry seasons. Fogg Dam has a history dating back to the 1950s, when it was constructed by the Royal Australian Air Force construction squadron for $100,000 to provide water for the failed Humpty Doo Rice Project.
Since then is has become a heritage-listed conservation area teeming with wildlife. Its popularity with birdwatchers and animal lovers has made it an easily accessible tourist destination that’s popular with locals too.
A group of artists, who each developed their own connection with Fogg Dam, have joined together for an exhibition of work showcasing the stories and sights of the dramatically changing landscape. Alison Worsnop coordinated the exhibition, which features painting, ceramics and textiles from Christian Clare Robertson, Jane Moore, traditional owner Graham Kenyon, Robert Walter, Veronica Priestley, Lee Berryman and others in the Rural Potters Association.
Worsnop has produced a body of paintings since the inception of the idea 12 months ago.
“It’s a place I’ve visited since I came to Darwin 20 years ago,” she said. “It’s a place of space and atmosphere that’s teeming with life. It’s somewhere I take visitors or visit when things are all getting a bit much, just to have some quiet time.”
Worsnop’s black and white paintings hang on the wall at Tactile Arts, showing the variety of wildlife in the area, from native rats and snakes to destructive introduced species.
“In 2008 and 2011 there were quite devastating floods on Fogg Dam and the dusky rat population was decimated,” Worsnop said.
“The pythons didn’t move on or look for more food further up and starved, too. I felt it was one of those stories that would have a message for us. We have these disasters that seem out of our control, but perhaps they’re not as much out of our control as we think. We’re not just snakes or rats, we have more power over our future.”
Each artist has a long history with the area, and has seen it evolve not just from Wet to Dry, but also over the decades.
“The more you know about it, and the science and ecology and history, the more interesting it becomes,” Worsnop said. “(The artists) have seen it change, facing a range of climatic and other environmental challenges.
“This project took us in unexpected directions: not just to wild water birds and pink lotus flowers, but to the geometry and sensual unfurling of a lotus leaf, self-warming flowers, survival, invaders, fire and climate change.”
Robert Walter first became involved with Fogg Dam in the 1980s by doing graphic design and illustration work for Parks and Wildlife. He said the change over the years was something only those who have been visiting for a long time would notice.
“It’s a dramatic changing, and you don’t get that if you go for a short visit,” he said.
One of his works for the exhibition was interrupted by a man-made change to the dam.
“I was in the middle of a watercolour and the area was totally bulldozed when I returned,” he said. “I got a bit of a shock.”
But even after back burning or natural fires during the Dry, or monsoonal rain and flooding in the Wet, the undeniable beauty of the area and its accessibility keeps artists and visitors returning.
“The interesting thing about Fogg Dam is it provides an accessible transition from woodland to ephemeral wetland and marshes. Normally up here that’s not accessible — in particular if you’re on foot,” Walter said.
“The transition of seasons is inspiring because you can get a clean view of the woodlands and the clear perspective of the sky and cloud formations — mostly up here you’re surrounded by vegetation and don’t get the opportunity to see that. It’s quite a unique little area, particularly in the early morning or late afternoon, with those really subtle, beautiful colours of the Top End.”
Artists at Fogg Dam runs at Tactile Arts Gallery until October 24.