JILL CHISM | 'Postcard from Port Douglas' | Mixed media assemblage

"This work uses postcards as a ‘Souvenir’ which was the theme for the travelling exhibition it was created for. I created this one from a photograph I took on Port Douglas beach. The image depicts an ordered, though humorous, arrangement of plastic chairs and umbrellas unlike typical postcards, which depict un-peopled static images, beautiful one day, perfect the next as an unconvincing portrayal of an unchanging natural environment. In contrast I have offered another perspective. Via differing filters for reality; the camera, digital images, painting styles and the incorporation of found objects and the portrayal of different times of the day I have alluded to shifting perceptions of what is; life in state of flux.

Postcard from Port Douglas offers a critique of the destructive aspects of tourism through focus on the accumulation of waste in the natural environment. Souvenir as a criticism of what tourists leave behind. Imbedded in the image are large amounts of collaged plastic, which I gathered over a three-month period from Port Douglas beach.

A more direct critiquing of washed-up waste, this work explores perception; how we see the environments we are in and how we treat them. I feel perception of our relationship to nature is the vital component in the survival of natural habitats and the health of the planet - through feeling separate from nature or conversely connected to it." - Jill Chism

JILL CHISM | 'Postcard from Port Douglas' | 2003 | Photography / digital imagery / mixed media / acrylic paint /  found objects on board | 3.6 x 2.1 m