Exhibition
outside inside – Hannah van der Wal and David Wickens
Where
Outstation Gallery8 Parap Place
Parap, 0820
Darwin, Northern Territory
LIVING IN THE TROPICS there is a blurry line between outdoors and indoors. Outdoor fans, the distance cry of the curlew and bark of a cheeky dog wafting in through the louvres in the dark of the night, the smell of smoke from the burn off, spatters of rain dampening the sheets as a wet season storm forces it’s way in through the fly screen.
We love the outdoors up here in the north. Kicking our shoes off at the door our living spaces are an ode to nature. This is part of what we love about the Territory. Those dwellings which break down the barriers of internal and external spaces.
The picnics and camping and alfresco dining unwilling to shut ourselves off from the wild and often sweltering conditions that nature throws in our faces. The creatures who find their way into our homes to cohabitate with us. The work in this exhibition is a celebration of all of these things.
Through this work we have explored our relationship with nature. We have been inspired by our trips “out bush”, observing the varied landscapes we find ourselves in, our time in others homes, cups of tea in the garden or in a lounge room with plants falling through the windows, forcing their way in through window sills. Currently living in North East Arnhem land we are spoilt by the ever changing colour pallets of the seven seasons according to Yolngu culture. Fires on the beach or in the back yard are a weekly occurrence, cooking outdoors, and collecting trinkets from our surrounds to bring indoors with us. We live in a house, a home, but the sensations of the outdoors are always wafting in, billowing through the curtains … it’s hard not to be inspired.
– HANNAH VAN DER WAL