Arrivederci

Arrivederci (goodbye) was installed in a number of locations near the Venice Biennale (from whence the leaves came) before retiring to interact with the elements adjacent the Giardini, facing the Canal Grande. This piece contemplated my personal relationship with the nature of temporal work, the danger the 1400+ year-old city faces as it fights against becoming a modern day Atlantis, and my experience of the Biennale itself. The typeface referenced a Venetian Humanist style by Nicolas Jenson in the 15th Century. The Madonna dell'Orto (Madonna of the orchard or kitchen garden) is a 14th Century (renovated) church in the sestiere of Cannaregio, nearby the Scuola Internazionale di Grafica di Venezia where I was undertaking a residency. This work made from bay leaves at the Scuola was both a lighthearted attempt to give the Madonna back her kitchen garden in a site devoid of green space, and a reflection on the social, religious, and environmental history of the area. My residency was supported by Arts SA and the Government of South Australia, and the 2012 Qantas Foundation of Australian Contemporary Art Award.