Bundanon's Siteworks: From a deep valley officially opens to sizeable weekend crowd

The sun was shining, the birds were chirping and the kangaroos were relishing in the heat of the day.

It was the first season opener for Bundanon in 2022 that wasn't dampened with a torrential downpour from La Nina.

Having experienced the historic property - originally owned by Arthur and Yvonne Boyd, under both conditions, it was great to see the sun draw a sizeable crowd for the opening of Bundanon's 'Siteworks: From a deep valley.'

The newest exhibition, 'Inside, underground', is a multi-faceted showcase of work bringing together both artists and scientists.

It is centered around the exploration of interior weather systems and the transformative potential of the natural world.

Curator, Sophie O'Brien expertly gave us a tour of the space, explaining in detail every work on display.

READ MORE:

The work that personally stood out to me was titled Older than bees by Isadora Vaughan, who created the piece while on residence at Bundanon.

Vaughn's work is a wall constructed out of beeswax blocks, joined together by heat and pressure.

Behind the wall sits a mechanical light tower which intermittently lights up the structure, transforming the work as a whole.

Vaughn said the work is intended to represent "a tension between the organic and the industrial."

At the conclusion of the season the wall will be smashed into small pieces and melted down to be used in future works on site.

Another personal highlight for me was The Possum Skin Cloak Project. In honour of the traditional process of possum skin cloak making, Yuin Walbunja Elder and artist Aunty Loretta Parsley and Gunai artist Kirli Saunders led an intensive on-country residency.

The work was created over a five-day period with 10 First Nation women being involved in the collaborative effort, with the final work being gifted to the Bundanon Collection.

While I would love to show you a photo as to what the cloak looks like, it is a sacred artifact and as a result photography of the work was prohibited.

I encourage people to go along to the exhibition and have a look because it truly is something to behold.

At the culmination of the tour, we learned about the World Weather Network (WWN) and Budanon's involvement in the program.

The WWN is a collective of 27 arts organisations across the world started by Artangel in the United Kingdom. For one year through this program, organisations will share 'weather reports' about their local weather and our shared climate.

"This will create an archipelago of voices and viewpoints on a new global platform," Ms O'Brian said.

"It will provide different ways of understanding the weather across multiple localities and languages."

Bundanon weather reports will consist of a dynamic program of talks, commissioned poems, interactive postcards, photographs and video works.

At the conclusion of the tour the season three program was officially opened to the public with Budanon CEO Rachel Kent addressing the large crowd that had gathered.

"It gives me a huge pleasure to welcome you all to Bundanon and introduce to you our third season," she said.

"Siteworks is Bundanon's annual event for all-ages, focusing on art and the natural environment which makes great sense for where we are located."

"The focus on the natural environment is particularly pertinent to a place like Bundanon, which exists on the precipice of climate change being situated in the middle of a fire and flood zone."

Ms Kent acknowledged the "small but incredible" team at Bundanon who continue to "punch well above their weight" in their efforts to bring every season to life.

After the address visitors made their way down to the hill overlooking the Shoalhaven River where we were able to witness a special smoking and dance ceremony performed by Gadhungal Murring and led by Dharrawal knowledge holder and language teacher Drew Longbottom.

The spectacular dance performance again revolved around the local natural environment with a focus on birds and animals and what they tell us about our natural environment.

The passion and love for the land and all its creatures was evident in the performers' song and dance with their expert explanations of everything they performed drawing in the crowd, making you want to continue to learn more.

Next Katie Paterson's performance, To burn, forest, fire, was centered around engaging the olfactory senses through the scents of the first and last forests on Earth.

Finally the day closed with a musical performance by Nick Wales, Jason Noble. Veronique Serret and Bree van Reyk titled Atmospheres.

This conceptual performance was based around capturing the natural sounds and surrounds of the Bundanon landscape.

The crowd was very engaged in the performance with an evident aura of relaxation in the air as patrons relaxed on the grass.

While you can visit the new exhibition at anytime, the next big schedule of events for season three will be held on Saturday, January 14, 2023.

The season will conclude at the end of February next year.