tretford supports life on the water

The event:

Victoria Amazonica is a work commissioned by the NGV for the NGV Triennial”, says Ewan McEoin, Senior Curator Design and Architecture.

The work is a collaboration between internationally acclaimed furniture designers from Brazil, artists from Larapinta Valley Town Camp, and Alice Springs-based designer Elliat Rich.

The concept:

Victoria Amazonica 2017 was based initially on a sketch Humberto Campana made in Alice Springs of a giant South American lily. This exuberant, large-scale soft domed structure features intricate embroidery by the Yarrenyty Arltere Artists that tells stories of rain, rivers and water.

Gibbon Group’s design team produced a handmade tretford rug to support the structure created by Brazilian designers Fernando and Humberto Campana in collaboration with Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, designers Elliat Rich and James Young and the Centre for Appropriate Technology – all based in Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.

“The colours of the forest reflected in tretford Lichen’s natural heathered green and golden yellow fibres.”

The design solution:

Humberto Campana (Designer) explained, “The idea is to work with the tradition here in Australian with the indigenous people and to create patterns with the nylon nets. Bring the tradition of the flora of the Brazilian forest; the Victoria Regia plant, the water plants, and to make a pavilion inspired in this.”

“We are so proud to see all these people here in Melbourne to see what work we are doing. We did a good job with our hands and we sowed everyday. When we walk into the art centre we’d just sew,” says Marlene Rubuntja (Artist – Yarrenyty Art).

“…when people walk inside they will see this kind of kaleidoscope of stories about water …”

Elliat Rich (Production Designer) suggests, “The idea that flows through all of it is this idea that water and our relationship to water across in Sao Paolo but also in Central Australia and how we have very different relationships to water, so when people walk inside they will see this kind of kaleidoscope of stories about water … and not, here is a river … here is a lake … but really the way that water flows through and brings the country and Central Australia to life.”

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