More than simply a piece of jewellery Areta Wilkinson’s work is an art form. It therefore comes as no surprise to why she was selected to display her work at this years 9th Asian Pacific Triennial (APT9) hosted by the Queensland Art Gallery & Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA).
Wilkinson is a New Zealand jeweler who describes her practice as “a way of making and working that is of today but speaks across time and acknowledges the making and practices of ancestors. Practice for me is thinking about the creative process or my creative practice as a life way which I am recording as I go,” she said.
Wilkinson demonstrated the method behind the creation of her adornments to the public at QAGOMA, allowing spectators of all ages to assist in the production. Using stones from the Waimakariri and Rakahuri Rivers in New Zealand in collaboration with hammer stones from the Brisbane river, Wilkinson describes it as a ‘collaboration’. “I’m going into different places and I’m recording the landscape on the metals and creating little narratives of the place,” she said.
When asked about the preparation needed for the APT9, Wilkinson simply replied with, “30 years of making things”. With a strong desire not to show any work that she had already made before, Wilkinson framed her exhibition as a ‘project space.’ She started work on her series for QAGOMA, Moa-hunter Fashions, at the end of last year, allowing members of the public to continue this journey with her during her demonstration at QAGOMA. Watching members of the public enjoy re-creating pieces of her artwork while using stone age tools from her home country is an experience Wilkinson will never forget. “It’s such a simple thing, it’s the first method of making stuff and I think it’s almost like people need to re-connect again,” she said.
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