Kath Inglis: Immersed in the Offsure 2024

Content from UpNext.com.au. Please don't scrape website.

South Australian contemporary jewellery artist Kath Inglis presents a solo exhibition of vividly coloured and intricately crafted wearable pieces that are inspired by her research on marine algae at the State Herbarium in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens. Epiphytes are plants or algae that grow upon one another, with a single plant hosting one or many others in a rich entanglement of biodiversity. This new body of work reflects Inglis' admiration of these complex arrangements as a demonstration of a mutually respectful and sustainable way of living together.

In her practice, Inglis transforms flexible Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) sheets from a prosaic material into precious wearable pieces through simple handworked processes such as dyeing, cutting, carving and heat fusing. When observing dried marine algae specimens through a microscope during her research, Inglis frequently referenced their intriguing surfaces to familiar plastic materials - cling wrap, lollypop sticks, cellophane, fishing line and mesh fruit bags. As many of these plastic items are often discarded after a single use, Inglis chose to weave these materials into her explorations upon returning to her jewellery bench. In this way, Inglis explores the rich entanglement of values between the living and non-living, thereby recognising positive natural relationships, creative hope and the seeking of material justice.