past exhibition

Olive and the Living Thread

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Paintings by Madeleine Goodwolf and Jonathan Partridge (view images)
15th August to 8th September 2008

Olive was a shadow girl. Wispy and fleeting. Catch me if you can. Shadows flew from her, as she ran along the cliff top. Running circles around her paper thin house, crouching on the edge of the world.

The sun threw itself at her, as it paddled across the sky. Igniting shadows. The salt wind chased her, pressing itself into her fragile corners. A draught that swept through the cracks and crevices of her soul.

One day she became alone. The string of a balloon unclasped. A solitary thought given to the vast sky.

She met loneliness. She tried to hold its hand, but it took more and reached its hand inside of her. She teased it out. Combed it. Brushed it. Cut it. Stitched a thread through the crevices.

Olive gazed at the sky. Looking through the delicate clouds that formed her life. Smiling at the string of pearls that passed overhead. She lay flat in the short summer grass. Draped on the stubbled cheek of the hill. And for a moment there was no shadow. Without that constant stranger and companion, she made a decision.

And so that day she kissed the cliff and pinned its ragged outline to her heart. Looping the outline around her wrist, twice, three times. She left.

And so life took her. Hand in hand, her and life ran. A beloved dog by her side. She began all over again. She unfolded into the landscape. Her naked feet lifted by the earth below. She walked the broken line between day and night, death and life. She followed the course thread that ran within her.

The cliff’s edge. The river’s course. The mountain’s silhouette. The bushfire’s death. The bird’s flight. The leaf’s vein. The ant’s trail.

Holding out her hand. Heart in palm. The landscape unravelled before her, generously accepting her every footstep. Receiving her every breath.

The trees made lullabies for her. The sky taught her about falling. The river swallowed her tears. The moon fancied her. She became the gentle voice of someone singing her into the landscape. A song from an ancient giant. He held her in his palm and showed her how big she was inside.

And slowly she learnt to give all that she had. The more she offered, the bigger she grew. She found that at times the seasons stumbled, she gave them her hand and beckoned them along. She applauded and cheered at the sky when it performed for her. She sat still and gazed at the rocks in silence. She ran so fast down the hills. And took flight. And here she met a bird. She flew with the bird. The bird taught her about trust. The bird taught her that over there is somewhere else. Just as when a bird is in flight, it leaves no footprints, and follows no trail, she learned to rest in the vast expanse of her completeness.

Olive gave the bird her shadow.

The bird gave Olive its shadow.

Madeleine Goodwolf

This recent body of work was initially based on the writings of a simple folktale, which touches on the story of ‘Olive’ and her journey through landscape; both her own emotional landscape and that of the environment surrounding her.

From this initial idea the etchings themselves took on their own story.

As a body of work they stem from my exploration of printmaking over the last ten years. My more recent work has been focusing on layering plates upon each other to build up a depth and richness in colour.

Drawing figuratively has always been integral to my work, and in this series it was Olive who came into my prints. Through the series she plays an interactive role with the landscape. Although there is a simple story within this exhibition, ultimately Olive lends herself to the individuals’ interpretation. She contemplates her relationship with her surroundings, and her ability to have a positive impact on the environment. Although engaging, Olive also remains somewhat illusive.

Generally my work derives directly from a subconscious level, with little planning or theory behind it. This particular series of prints came from a very intuitive place, which for me is the most satisfying way to work.

 

Jonathan Partridge

The development of this work through a simple folktale was a response to the subjective reflection one has at viewing life and art.  I believe we create our own narrative to what we view, according to our own internal landscape.  This work reflects an individual’s journey to find a sense of place, within internal and external spheres of reality. 

My work is an endeavour to create an intimacy with the landscape, just as an individual develops an intimacy within themselves. It is a reflection of how we transform ourselves as we traverse and explore the spheres in which we abide.  The place we inhabit, inhabits us.  We are shaped just as we shape that which is around us.