The Unseen Collection-Hawkesbury Community Arts Workshop-The Village Kitchen Kurrajong

The plight of the ones we love can have a profound effect on what inspires us.

Recently my mother in law, the only person I call Mum has been going through a hereditary condition called macular degeneration. She has gone legally blind in one eye and her optometrist has encouraged her to have a regular injection in her other eye which is really painful. Mum loves to read books and we share this common interest together. Like my brave Big Gran she is persisting with her reading with a magnifying glass and glasses. 

I wasn't sure how to approach this common interest after her diagnosis. I wanted to maintain our common interests and I wanted to help her with her journey as best I could. I have also been scared that she may not be able to see our future kids and so I have explored for her and our future, other ways she can experience the world. So I decided to create some ceramic works that didn't require her to use her glasses and to remind her that if she were to lose her sight entirely, that there would be other ways she can experience the world. I wanted these works to be a positive reminder that she is not alone, that she is loved and that whatever roadblocks she experiences in life; that my husband and I will be by her side helping her and supporting her.

These works also present a much wider experience that art has the potential to expand on. These types of works create a space where art can be more inclusive and explore the experience of all types of disability. Another artist that creates tactile artworks is the head of the We Art Collective Jackie Terrett. She often creates textile works that encourage the viewer to touch them and are designed to help the viewer relieve stress.

The day after install, my husband and I took Mum and Dad to see this exhibition. We looked at the works (of course touched them) and then we sat down for cuppas and lunch. Afterwards I showed them the Hawkesbury Community Arts Workshop. 

Mum had previously had an injection in her eye. Going to see this exhibition and how she inspired these works really left her spirits. It was such a lovely day out and I'm so glad I decided to do this exhibition.

After a busy year with our wedding and me trying different jobs, I decided to only have one exhibition a year while I work on my writing career. I've always been back and forth between art and writing and after 4 solid years solely working on my art career, it's time to expand on my writing knowledge and ability.

I'm glad that this years 1 physical exhibition was about Mum. She deserves having art dedicated to her and although she didn't raise me, she has been the best Mum I have ever had and the only Mum I've had that I really look up to. She is so smart, strong, opinionated, loyal and she loves all her children so fiercely. I hope I become as good a Mum as her and I know she will be an excellent nan to my future children.