larapuna light

Artist Statement - In June 2022 I spent two weeks living and working in one of the lighthouse cottages at larapuna (Eddystone Point) on the far North East coast of Tasmania. I was curious to explore the iconic east coast Devonian granites beyond the surface...to look deep into the myriad of crystals that form huge geological structures that stretch South from Victoria through Flinders Island, and to the north east of Tasmania.

Masses of crystalized minerals formed when molten minerals slowly cooled under the surface of the earth and over the eons these granites have been witness to countless changes. Geological polarized micrographs (microscopic images) of the granite allow me to look deeply into the hidden world of colour refracted through complex layers of interleaved crystal plates.

I have simplified and stylized the myriad of shapes within the geological samples, amplifying their qualities in order to take viewers within the Eyes of Granite that witness the passage of deep time from aeons ago and into the future.

The lighthouse buildings where I stayed were built from local granite quarried from the larapuna beach, and the walls sparkled with refracted light from the crystal structures within the rock.

Every morning before sunrise I would walk in the gloaming, up the coastal track, to circle the lighthouse. In the evenings my readings of ‘On Time and Water’ by Icelandic author Andri Snaer Magnason made me reflect on Climate Change, the fragility of life and the interconnectedness of all matter.

What will the Eyes of Granite see within our efforts to restore our planet to health? Will we succeed to curtail climate change…or not?

Acknowledgements Tasmanian Aboriginal Land Council, Arts Tasmania, Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife & Tasmanian Mineral Resources