Katy Woodroffe
Treasure Island 2011

Colville Gallery, Hobart

This work evolved from my experiences during a residency on a Greek Island at the Skopelos Foundation for the Arts last year. Regular dinners at a local restaurant under a fully laden pomegranate tree, sparked an interest in the significance of this fruit in Greek mythology.

The ancient myth of mother and daughter, Demeter and Persephone, touches on many complex human emotions such as love, lust, desire, passion, grief, control, deception, temptation and resurrection.

After the kidnapping of her daughter, the suffering of Demeter, goddess of the harvest, threatens to cause great harm to the earth. And the power and attraction of the pomegranate seed deceives Persephone so that she is condemned to spend four months of each year in the underworld. The natural transition of the seasons thus becomes part of the myth and is associated with the grieving of Demeter. Persephone represents both youth and spring. Her continued relocation back to the earth suggests renewal and increased vitality.

This work explores a fictional narrative around the myth and also makes reference to Skopelos, where the ancient Greek culture always seems to be just beneath the surface of this 'treasure island'.

'Looking at objects from other cultures and countries, I am a tourist, in awe of their beauty and power. I follow my instincts and am compelled to draw certain forms, trying to understand them and the effect their presence has on me. I am "swallowing" culture and it co-exists with my own – from two different hemispheres'.

Judy Watson
Watson J and Martin Chew L, 2009, Judy Watson Blood Language, Melbourne, Miegunyah Press p.42

KATY WOODROFFE

Beneath the Oasis

The lament of the nightingale occurred in the meadow,
So that you are like a pavilion of roses in the mirror

The 8 pieces of work in this exhibition are all diptyches based on the poetic form of the ghazal. They are connected by content and concept but can each be interpreted as independent artworks.

The poetic form of the ghazal originated in Arabia in the seventh century and gained prominence in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries with the Persian poets Rumi and Hafiz. The ghazal is made up of couplets, which are structurally and thematically linked and they can each be read as an individual poem.

The inspiration for the work occurred In April 2008 when I was invited to undertake a residency at the Fundacion Valparaiso, near the hilltop Moorish village of Mojacar in the south of Spain. A visit to the nearby Alhambra Palace in Granada in 2006 had been a profound experience and resulted in two major exhibitions back in Australia later that year. To be actually immersed in the history and atmosphere of this Moorish village re-ignited my passion for the culture and this became apparent as my work evolved during the four weeks.

A row of ceramic pitchers, which had been used by the women of Mojacar, were a constant reminder of their presence as I walked to my studio every day and they finally provided me with the reference I was seeking for this series of works.

The universal elements of earth, water, fire and air were extensively used in Rumi’s poems and they have been included in this allegorical series “the Nightingale’s Lament”.

All work incorporates various printmaking processes on paper using water-based acrylics layered with oxides and linseed oil.