Solo Exhibition
Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Temple, Christchurch
2 Harakeke Street, Riccarton, Christchurch
Oct 27, 2018 – Jan 27, 2019
“Look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better.”
- Albert Einstein
The single dried out hydrangea stem, which had fallen to one side of the compost bin, caught my attention. No longer in its prime, the flower head’s hues were changing to muted blues and browns and as I picked it up off the ground, the once soft, pliable petals felt desiccated and delicate. Yet despite its fragility, the hydrangea was no less beautiful. I closed down the lid of the compost bin and carried the flower into my studio.
Looking “deep into nature...” as Einstein suggested, caused me to reflect on the transient and fragile nature of our world and to question the true essence of beauty. These themes became the inspiration for “A Moment in Time”.
From the delicate petals of the Oriental poppy, so vulnerable to the elements, to the resilient Pinus Coulteri pine cone, almost indestructible by comparison, each plant reveals its own narrative while none escapes the passing of time. When we make a study of nature we see that there is beauty in every stage of the life cycle. In the natural world, the dried hydrangea stem, brittle and faded, may have lost its youthful resilience and intensity of colour but even as the bloom decays, it is no less beautiful.
And if we view nature as a parallel for the human experience, how should we then construe the mutability and transience of beauty in our world? Does Society define physical beauty by what is youthful, aesthetically pleasing and current? Or should we instead define beauty as the honest and authentic expression of our true selves and the goodness within each of us? ‘Beauty’ in nature calls us to look beyond superficial appearance and to notice and appreciate the gifts in each stage of life. Nature celebrates the beauty and value of! all life forms, in each season, in each cycle, in each ‘Moment in Time’.