Abbotsford Convent

A great day yesterday.
We delivered our entries to the Aus College of Design feeling good that we had all had our work accepted in the competition
At the Centre for Contemporary photography we saw a mesmerising video work based on paintings by Breughal. The artist had animated many components of the paintings creating a moving landscape which added an entirely new dimension to the originals. I enjoyed the experience of this work.
After much scenic touring we arrived at the convent and ate a sumptuous lunch. We were then priveliged to view an installation by Rocio Roman entitled "Transmutacion".
The artist spoke to us about her work. She was dedicated, articulate and impressive.
I found the piece gentle, poignant, powerful.
We were then let loose with our cameras and here are some of my results.
I called this first one "The Wounded Wall"
It has connotations for me of the former sad history of the convent as a child care facility. While the walls may have provided much needed shelter for the children the methods employed by their "carers" often left much to be desired. Likewise, the cables providing the "life" to the building are brutally punched through the wall in contrast to the ordered way they are initially laid out.
Good intentions, bad execution









Two windows displaying delicate filigree surrounded by
lovely natural patterning from ivy which has been pulled off.

















A charming old shed and an awesome oak tree whose lower branches were resting on the ground.
It was too big to fit into the shot completely. Standing underneath it felt like being in a green cave, serene and protected. I could have stayed there for ages.