David Burrows

“As I approached this extraordinary landscape, I felt a profound, almost childlike sense of wonder. I was stepping into a world that was both ancient and unfamiliar.” ⁠ ⁠ In 2011, artist David Burrows had the opportunity to visit the icy continent as the Australian Antarctic Arts Fellow. Burrows accompanied a team of biologists to a small rocky site behind Casey Station where abundant moss has thrived for centuries. Nourished by guano from a long‑abandoned penguin colony, this fragile ecosystem persists in a place we rarely imagine as green. ⁠ ⁠ Burrows describes his motivations for photographing the moss gardens, saying “I wanted to confront expectations of Antarctic imagery while also offering the grandeur these ancient ecosystems deserve: landscapes without snow, ice, or penguins; green valleys and primordial vegetation instead of white emptiness.” ⁠ ⁠ You might have noticed the bold sky that reflects in the moss-encircled ponds of Burrows’ photographs exhibited in ‘Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists in the Far South’. These skies have been digitally composed and added to the photographs by the artist, who wished to pay homage to Frank Hurley, another artist featured in ‘Creative Antarctica’. ⁠ ⁠ Burrows says that “this decision was informed by my respect for Hurley’s pioneering Antarctic photographs, the historical symmetry of making this work nearly a century after his expeditions, and by conversations with fellow expeditioners about truth and manipulation in photography.” ⁠ ⁠ Are these vast panoramic scenes, or windows into a microscopic world? Are we looking at remnants of an ancient past, or visions of a possible future? ⁠ ⁠ @dabid_burrows ⁠ ⁠ - ⁠ ⁠ ‘Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South’ closes this Saturday, 2 May. ⁠ ⁠ #CreativeAntarctica #RMITGalleries

Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South Thursday 19 February, 5:30–8:30PM RMIT Gallery and Design Hub Gallery Opening remarks 6:00PM at Design Hub Gallery RMIT Galleries is delighted to present Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South. Please join us to celebrate the opening of this major exhibition, spanning RMIT Gallery and Design Hub Gallery at RMIT University’s Melbourne city campus. Opening remarks by Professor Tim Marshall, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Design and Social Context and Vice President, RMIT University; and Professor Elizabeth Leane, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Tasmania. Both galleries will be open from 5:30PM and refreshments will be served. Creative Antarctica is a multifaceted exhibition featuring over 35 Australian artists and writers who have been influenced by their observations and experiences of the Far South. Including new, site-specific installations, historically significant artworks and a rich suite of talks, panels and workshops, the exhibition provides a variety of engagement opportunities and modes of encounter with the Antarctic. Creative Antarctica was produced as part of the Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Project, Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South, in collaboration with project team members. LEAD CURATOR Philip Samartzis ARTISTS James Batchelor, David Bridie, Maria Buchner, David Burrows, Stephen Eastaugh, Lawrence English, Kirsten Haydon, William Hodges, Frank Hurley, Nicholas Hutcheson, Keith Jack, Leila Jeffreys, John Kelly, Janet Laurence, Nel Law, Phillip Law, Alison Lester, Sue Lovegrove, Bea Maddock, Douglas Mawson, John McCormick, Adam Nash, Miranda Nieboer, David Neilson, Sidney Nolan, Lin Onus, Charles Page, Judith Parrott, Christian Clare Robertson, Sally Robinson, Philip Samartzis, Jörg Schmeisser, Jan Senbergs, Polly Stanton, Charles Turnbull Harrisson, K. Verell, Martin Walch, Sean Williams.

Summer nights

Equinox sunrise - the return of light and balance

Homeward bound

The far shore

Night trees