Gone Star Fishing

Research Background.
The artist book gained recognition as a distinct genre of the visual arts in the 1970s, becoming central to the development of conceptual art. The medium has spawned numerous specialist critical publications and institutions including The Center for Book Arts in New York and the Artists’ Books + Multiples Fair in Brisbane. Gone Star Fishing utilises a discarded book cover with original content created from redundant encyclopaedia illustrations. The book forms part of a conscious move towards more sustainable production strategies through the use of recycled materials which, in turn, drive content.

Research Contribution.
The book contributes to innovation within the field of artist books through novel repurposing of recycled materials in the construction of narrative/content. In merging motifs from deep space with 'the deep', both environments in which ‘stars’ may be found, I draw parallels between the limits of our understanding of environments hostile to human habitation, both on our own planet and others - and our overlapping fantasies of the two. The rockets, satellites and other evidence of human industry highlight our fantasies of conquest, alluding to space junk and the human history of discovery for the purposes of exploitation of resources, without fully considering or understanding the consequences. The work both critiques and offers an antidote to contemporary consumer culture, while repurposing its detritus into a hand-crafted artefact, thus limiting my own environmental footprint.

Research Significance.
The Banyule Award is a national prize recognising excellence in works on paper. This year, 40 finalists were selected from 439 entries. Selection as a finalist reflects recognition of excellence in the field at a national level. I was further awarded the 2nd Commendation Prize by Judges Maguerite Brown (General Manager, Print Council of Australia), Richard Evans (Team Leader, Incinerator Gallery) and artist Hayley Millar-Baker.