INSTALLATIONS

BEGUILED
TO HELP TIME PASS BY PLEASANTLY
Materials: Cane and Raffia
An organic and ephemeral installation made of natural materials that captures a space in time. This installation is a symbol of the challenges we face during our life journey. It aims to enthral, mesmerise and captivate as an assemblage gently rotating with the natural flow of air.
Artist Patricia Abela facilitated workshops for participants of the Malta Society of the Blind to build the artwork during her artist in residency at the Valletta Design Cluster in October 2023.
Participants were able to share life experiences and were uplifted as they participated in these unique workshops.
‘Art is the highest form of hope’- a quote by German painter Gerhard Richter
This project is part of the Spazju Kreattiv - Artists’ Residency Programme, in collaboration with the Valletta Design Cluster, Valletta Cultural Agency and the Ministry for Gozo.
The artist wishes to also acknowledge the support of the Rotary Club of Blackheath, New South Wales, Australia, and private Australian sponsors for their support of this project.

Global Sea Grass Survival

Medium: Spear grass, drafting film, posca pens and plastic

This installation evokes a sense of being amongst the grasses. My idea was to create an artwork with which people could connect, to further their understanding of the global importance of protecting, conserving and restoring seagrass meadows. The grasses are reflected below in the drawing with colours merging from green, silver to white which represent the seagrass alive, to being adversely impacted, to dying.

Seagrasses perform numerous functions, like stabilising the sea floor, providing food and habitat for marine organisms, maintaining water quality and supporting local economies. Dugongs and sea turtles heavily rely on seagrass as their food source.

The major impacts on seagrass in the Great Barrier Reef include:

• Poor water quality from catchment runoff

• Habitat loss from increasing coastal development

• Expansion in ports and shipping

• Increased intensity of storms, floods and cyclones

• Sea surface temperature and sea level rise.

Road to Damascus

Collected from the Castlereagh Highway, Yuwaalaray country, during the recent intense drought, these kangaroo bones were among a mass of native animal carcasses strewn across hundreds of kilometres. It was a devastating scene to witness and left me feeling bereft and grief stricken. I felt a great urgency to return and did so eight months later to collect some of the many bone fragments.

These bones hold the very being of animals that once were here and are now gone. When our spirit is broken, nature can be a wonderful source for healing. First nations people have said this for many years. Our ecosystems are on the brink of collapse, scientists have proven this.

I have displayed the bones in a tight highway formation, heading towards a solid wall. Will we, as human beings, collectively come together to recover our environment? The answer lies at the vanishing point.

These bones will be respectfully returned to Yuwaalaray country.

Of the spirituality of nature, David Attenborough said -

'In moments of great grief, that's where you look and immerse yourself. You realise you are not immortal, you are not a god, you are part of the natural world and you come to accept that.'