Desert living with found objects

Remote, arid Australia is full of delightful surprises. It is harsh yes, but there is a light and vastness that opens the heart and mind and can spur creativity. When I lived on the Ngaanyatjarra Lands, Western Australia for six months in 2025, I got a taste of what life is like on 'The Lands'.

The photos explain it better than any words can. I made quite a few works  but most importantly experimented with all kinds of materials retrieved from the rubbish dump or from our own household waste. Old car bits, petrified plastic, dried orange peel, tin cans, rubber, wire and dried paint from the Art Centre.

The climate was a strong influence on the making process. With constant heatwaves it was easy to make paper mache.

The air is so dry, materials have a hardness that means they can be used in assemblage.  The geology of the area is also amazing. There is  quartz, agate and my all-time favourite chrysoprase.  I have explained the background to the desert life in a Substack blog. 


I respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which I work, travel & live, the Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation and the  Ngaanyatjarra, Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara (NPY) Lands of Central Australia. I pay my respects to the spirits, ancestors, elders and community members, and recognise their continuing connection and contribution to the land and waters.