2019

This work was made after my recent conversation with Quandamooka artist Megan Cope for my ongoing project A World of One's Own. The title of the work (Markers of occupation) refers directly to a quote from Megan about the way that traditional middens (piles of oyster shells) acted as a marker in the landscape for her people for thousands of years, to know where the meeting place or 'kitchen was at'.

Interestingly, the conversation led to a discussion around what qualifies as architecture and how objects left behind can act as proof that people occupied a place and a long-held tradition. I reflected on my family history originating in stone-masonry and this sculpture attempts to communicate a desire to dismantle or deconstruct my colonial foundations to re-build a new understanding of occupation and ideas of ownership and meaning of place.

About the Artist

Tai Snaith's website