Artists statement

This artwork by Indigenous artist Kent Morris (Barkindji people) features a delicate pattern of native plants and watchful fairy wrens, while interconnecting fence wires reference First Nations geometric designs of Australia’s South East. Carefully constructed from a single photograph, the repeating pattern provides a First Nations’ perspective that depicts plants, animals, humans, land, sea and sky as interconnected and interdependent.

Indigenous stories about the superb fairy-wren highlight the importance of individuality, but caution against competitive behaviour to prove individual worth. Systems of Sustainability #2 evokes a journey towards the incorporation of Indigenous knowledge and philosophies in ecosystem management and other areas of life in Australia to provide the possibility of a sustainable future for all.