WRVAP at Tocal, May 2010

Above: Bridget Nicholson touch this earth lightly, 2010,

photographer Juliet Fowler Smith

Above: Suzanne Bartos Surfboard 2010

Photographer Noelene lucas

Above: Juliet Fowler Smith Manns Hill Preserves 2010

Tocal Field Days

WRVAP is pleased to be offered the opportunity to show work at Tocal Homestead during the Tocal Agricultural College annual Field Days event from April 30 - May 2, 2010. Tocal is 15 minutes from Maitland on Tocal Road, Paterson, and the Field Days have over 600 exhibitors and a number of events of interest to both the rural and wider community.

For the duration of these Field Day events, WRVAP artworks will be on show in the Tocal barn:

These will include an installation of shoes made by local artist Bridget Nicholson, who, as part of the Williams River project, is making individual shoes for people by wrapping their feet in clay. The collection will form an installation titled ‘touch this earth lightly’. Bridget will be available at Tocal Homestead during the 3 field days to do people’s feet. The process takes approximately 20 minutes per person and Bridget will also be talking to people and recording their views on their own relationship to their feet and to the environment. Examples of shoes made to date are shown below:

Opening on 24 October

WRVAP organiser, Juliet Fowler Smith (centre) with Sally Corbett of the No Tillegra Dam group (left) and local resident/campaigner, Patricia Middlebrook (right) at the opening of the Williams River Artists Project show at Muswellbrook Regional Gallery, October 24, 2009.

Project organiser, Juliet Fowler Smith reports: The opening of the WRVAP exhibition at the Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre was packed thanks to being on with the Muswellbrook Art Prize- the Mayor opened it and I got to say a few words too. A group from Dungog came which was great and we were able to get some signatures on postcards about the EAR submission re the dam, which the Wilderness Society is co-ordinating. We also got front page coverage in the Muswellbrook Chronicle and were interviewed by ABC local radio plus other coverage in local media. The show contains Noelene’s video of the river flow, my couch with water filled cushions, Bridget’s feet/shoes, Marg's No Williams River Collection on a digital photo frame, David’s beautiful image River Mourn and Suzanne's bedhead/surfboards.

WRVAP artists (left to right), Juliet Fowler Smith, Noelene Lucas and Suzanne Bartos, on Juliet's Water Couch (with water-filled cushions) in front of Noelene's video The Last Healthy River in the Hunter, at the opening of the Williams River Artists Project show at Muswellbrook Regional Gallery, October 24, 2009.

From the Williams River Artists' Project show at Muswellbrook Regional Gallery: L to R: R.I.P.- no chance, bed-head surfboards by Suzanne Bartos, Take Us Instead (and leave the water in the river) slide-show in wall photoframe by Margaret Roberts, Water Couch by Juliet Fowler Smith, River Mourn, photographic print by David Watson, and Touch this earth lightly, feet-work by Bridget Nicholson.

The June residency

MANNS HILL

Standing on Egg-top Hill—and watched by Bridget Nicholson and Hanna—Juliet Fowler Smith and Suzanne Bartos point to the seedlings recently planted on top of Manns Hill, the one part of the Munni area that will remain above water level if the valley is flooded to make the Tillegra Dam. The seedlings have been planted as part of a memorial reforestation of Manns Hill.

MEETING WITH MUNNI PEOPLE

14th June 2009: Photos from a meeting with locals Simone Turner and Patricia Middlebrook, to talk about how the dam would impact on them and their community:

A walk down to the river.

Simone takes Bridget to show her an old swimming spot in the river.

Simone remembers coming across a group of nude bathers there as a child!

MUNNI ARTIST

Local artist, photographer and historian Simone E. Turner has been photographing the landscape around Munni and Tillegra for many years. As much of her work is about memory, her photographs of the William's River valley have taken on a renewed significance with the awareness that, with the dam, these places will no longer be visible.

THE CEMETERY

Entry by Suzanne Bartos: This poem was composed from text found in the minutes of the Quart Pot Cemetery Subcommittee meeting 1st August 2007. This committee's role is to oversee the moving of the local cemetery, which is in the area to be flooded if the Tillegra Dam is built. The committee sought legal advice as to what family member they legally had to get permission from in order to move those buried in the cemetery.

The minutes read: "Legal Advise - Hierarchy Next of Kin" Glen advised, the advise from the lawyer was expected to include advise on the legal status regarding the hierarchy for next of kin. The intention is to use the legal advise to guide the development of the cemetery relocation process and discussions with affected families."

Sorting out the affected families' distress over this issue by using legal means is a heavy handed and divisive 'process' and a very one sided 'discussion'. Read: It is enough for us to get permission from any family member and then we can do what we want.

Definition of Next of Kin

The deceased person’s spouse.

Or, if the deceased person did not have a spouse-

any of the deceased person’s sons or daughters.

Or, if the deceased person did not have a spouse, son or daughter Or a spouse, son or daughter are not available –

Either of the deceased person’s parents

Or, If the deceased person did not have a spouse, son, daughter, or living parent or a spouse, son, daughter or parent is not available –

any of the brothers or sisters

Or, if the deceased person did not have a spouse, son, daughter, living parent, brother or sister,

or a spouse, son, daughter, parent, brother or sister is not available

Then…..

don’t go around thinking that you’re not loved.

Beginnings

Williams River - Juliet Fowler-Smith

Paraphrase from March 2009 edition of Artsbark (Arts Upper Hunter)

In pursuit of contemporary expression, artist and long time resident of the Williams Valley, Juliet Fowler Smith, has rounded up a group of 10 feisty artists to spend time in the proposed inundation zone for the Tillegra Dam. The group comes from near and far and all of the artists are interested in exploring the emotional effects brought about by significant change to our environment. What are we doing to ourselves when we attempt to control, dictate and manipulate? This group of artists will be spending time in the Valley, not only immersing themselves in the physical but also hanging out with the locals, those who are part of the landscape.

Work produced will be exhibited in venues currently being negotiated


Artists in the project.
Suzanne Bartos, Neil Berecry-Brown, Bonita Ely, Juliet Fowler-Smith, Noelene Lucas, Bridget Nicholson, Margaret Roberts, Toni Warburton, David Watson