Sofia, Bulgaria| 2018 & Beaudesert, QLD |2017
Kiss the Earth (with your feet)
This was an interactive installation of paper paths laid on the floor on which people walked barefoot.
This was an interactive installation of paper paths laid on the floor on which people walked barefoot.
Installation for Responsive Paper, IAPMA congress - Paper: Conscience and Consciousness, Sofia, Bulgaria. May 2018.
Installation at Caring for Country exhibition, The Centre, Beaudesert, QLD. August 2017.
The paper is handmade from banana plant fibre which has the appearance of translucent fragility yet is quite strong and like the earth responds to our touch.
“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet” ~ Thích Nhất Hạnh
A young Shaolin monk learns the precepts of Buddhist teachings and is told by his Master "When you can walk the rice paper without tearing it, then your steps will not be heard." [1] To tread lightly on this earth has become the mantra of the ecological movement, and is embedded in the teachings of indigenous communities around the world.
To care for country, we must practice to tread lightly, to pay attention to our interactions with the environment. As a paper artist I am inspired to use the fragility and strength of handmade paper as a metaphor for resilience and a hopeful future.
[1] From the telemovie Kung Fu by Ed Spielman (1972)