Glyphs: Hidden and Forbidden

The Kimberley Series:

My work has been inspired by a recent trip up north – travelling through the rugged, awesome wilderness of the Kimberleys, across to Darwin and then up to North East Arnhem Land. The scope of the landscapes with their limitless space, and sacred corners; their rich, bold colours and emanating spirit – took me on a journey – a journey of discovery. 

My creative response to this land has been no less than mixed and multi-layered. To take this land on ‘face value’ is to miss the depth of understanding and perception that lies ‘between the lines’ within the caves and the crevices; beyond the escarpments to the homelands and the dreamtime of an ancient people. 

This exhibition meanders from a literal response to the grandeur and immense beauty of this region with a range of realistic paintings, into a more experiential reaction, exploring the wax medium to evoke the textures, colours and space of the Kimberley; culminating in a series of works, coming from a more subconscious level, where my personal background, and Jewish tradition drives me to include my ‘signature’ markings on the arrid Australian landscape – the Hebrew text – an ancient glyph – the sacred Jewish letters.

In all works, there is something of the hidden and forbidden, sometimes obvious in translation, but mostly subtle and hidden beneath the palimpsest of layers within the work. I have selected texts from the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Old Testament, and a Kabbalistic prayer recited on the Day of Atonement. Texts that relate to the land, the forms of life, and being. The translations of which can be referred to along side the specific works.