From mid June until mid July John Hooper and I were doing our BigCi Environmental Art Award at BigCi in the Blue Mountains in Australia. It was one of the most important things I have ever done. The mental processing of experiencing a forest so damaged by wildfires was significant. Noticing the missing bird populations was a sobering experience.

After the first two weeks of blue skies and clear nights, the rain started to pour torrentially and didn’t stop for over a week. This rain saturated the ground, flooded rivers and homes and other buildings around the area. We were lucky to not have water in our accommodation, but many local bridges were closed for days as the water and trees rushed over them, causing chaos as it went. It was heartbreaking to hear the stories of the local people on the news saying that this was the third or forth flood within a year to destroy the ground floor of their homes. My thoughts also went to the flora and fauna of the forest, who had somehow come back after the fires, to face the flooding rain.

I am still processing what a confronting experience it was - I feel completely changed by it. I am so incredibly grateful to Rae and Yuri Bolotin of BigCi for offering us this unique experience, an opportunity to see with our own eyes what these impacts of the climate crisis look like. The work they do through this residency must have a massive, global impact.

John and I have made a film which we will be sharing soon. I will also be sharing more images and experiences from the residency over the next couple of months via social media.

Photo by John Hooper.