Craft ACT Artist-in-residence 2014: Bogs and Fens

Sally Blake
Working on the conservation of bogs
and fens project has been a creative and
intellectual challenge in understanding
how these natural systems work and the
important role they play in the overall
environment. Working in the space
between art, science and conservation
has been particularly rewarding, and all
the partners were generous in sharing
their knowledge and expertise.
At Gudgenby Ready-Cut Cottage
I focused my field research on the
collection of plant materials from the bogs
and fens to use for plant dyes. A plant’s
rootedness means the colours it produces
indicates aspects of the environment in
which it grows. At the Australian National
Botanic Gardens I was moved by the
work that is done by staff and volunteers
to conserve seeds from these vulnerable
communities in the seedbank.
In Seed Baskets I used the threads
coloured by plants and silver wire to make
a collection of symbolic vessels to hold
the precious seeds. Like the bogs and fens
these baskets possess a tension between
fragility and resilience. In my second work,
The Ecological Thought 1 I have crocheted
a large piece from 4,500 metres of yarn
to represent the entangling mesh which
connects all living things.
1 Professor Timothy Morton writes, “…the ecological thought
is the thinking of interconnectedness.” Timothy Morton,
The Ecological Thought (Cambridge, Massachusetts:
Harvard University Press, 2010), 7.
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Above: Sally Blake with ACT Parks and Conservation staff, Gudgenby Ready-Cut Cottage,
Namadgi National Park. Photography: Art Atelier Photography.
Right: Sally Blake at work during her residency, Gudgenby Ready-Cut Cottage,
Namadgi National Park. Photography: Art Atelier Photography.