Artist statement

My practice explores the personal dissonance at the junction of my role as a beef farmer and my concern for protecting our environmental biodiversity in Queensland, Australia. This asymmetrical human/nature relationship is expressed through abstract sculpture made of objects scavenged from our farm. These are both synthetic and organic and have been impacted by major weather events – drought, bush fire or flood.

Material processes are subjective and arise in response to the very personal mix of embedded connection, pride and guilt which I call my Climate Conscience. I consider the aesthetic, physical and conceptual properties of the materials and search instinctively for a technique to uncover a different way of looking at something familiar, provoking uncertainty in the expected, a condition which is sadly reflected in contemporary Australia in the grip of climate change.

My practice which bears witness to a changing climate and the vulnerability of natural resources presents a self-reflective body of work and offers a mirror to the viewer.

Biography

Sue Gedda, Visual Artist. Born Canterbury, UK.

Raised in English suburbia, Sue gained a Bachelor of Education (Hons) and taught Physical Education for 6 years before travelling overseas in 1988 and settling in Central Queensland, Australia in 1991.

Already possessing a strong affinity with the natural environment, Sue found herself immersed in the expanse of rural Australia, living on the family beef property and absorbing the patterns of local ecology and the complex relationship between human and Nature.

After raising a family her perpetual interest in sketching developed into membership of local artist communities and study for an online Bachelor of Arts. She has explored diverse art genres and attended many art workshops in Australia and in the UK.

Affected by an unprecedented flood in 2017, climate change has become more of a focus in her creative work. With links to Arte Povera, Environmental and Ecological Art her practice has evolved towards found object sculpture encompassing local materials and issues. Her current body of work explores her personal dilemma within the interaction between the livestock industry and her protective connection to the environment.

She has exhibited in numerous group shows locally and with the Watercolour Society Queensland and Royal Queensland Art Society, Brisbane.

Undergraduate exhibition ‘Clima(c)tic’: August 2020

Memberships:

Watercolour Society Queensland, Royal Queensland Art Society, Sculptors Queensland, National Association of the Visual Arts and Flying Arts Association Queensland.

CV

Sue Gedda, Central Queensland, Australia.

Instagram: @suegedda

1982 B.Ed. Hons, UK

2012 – 2020 part-time online B.A. Hons Painting, UK

2019 Flying Arts Alliance Exhibition Development Programme

2020 NAVA Writing grant proposals online workshop

Exhibitions (Awards)

2017 Watercolour Society Queensland members’ exhibition, Brisbane Botanic Gardens auditorium, curator Di Taylor (2^nd Innovative Section)

2017 Royal Queensland Art Society Abstract Exhibition, Petrie Terrace Gallery, Brisbane, curator Beverley Tainton (People’s Choice Award)

2017 Flying Arts Alliance Queensland Regional Art Awards (finalist shortlist)

2017 Anywhere Exhibition, Mackay Showgrounds, curator Leonie Wood

2016 Milton House Gallery Group Exhibition, Mackay, curator Bradley Short

2015 Mackay Art Society Annual Exhibition, curator Sue Gee, (1^st watercolour, 1^st Acrylic)

2014 Mackay Art Society Annual Exhibition, curator Sue Gee (1st watercolour)

2013 Mackay Art Society Annual Exhibition, curator Sue Gee

2013 Sarina Art Show, Emerging Artist Award