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This is
Cassowary Country is
a collaborative effort by seven artists. The artists,
working in diverse media and styles, are unified in their
deep concern for the preservation of the far north Queensland
rainforest habitat of the cassowary. And they are anxious
to highlight the precarious situation for this important,
umbrella species - the cassowary.
The artists
are members and affiliates of Kuranda Conservation
Community Nursery and the exhibition complements the
KCons work to identify and document the remaining cassowaries,
their habitat and its condition in this region. In
this study cassowary scats are collected and their
locations recorded. This research makes a significant
contribution to the overarching CSIRO Cassowary Recovery
Plan for the Wet Tropics. The study is in addition
to KCon’s volunteer
program of growing local native for a in its 5000-plant
nursery for public and private plantings.
The artists,
recognising the unique ability of visual art to communicate
complex ideas in a way which other media cannot, have
created new works for this exhibition with the aspiration
of widening awareness of the endangerment of the cassowary.
They draw attention to its importance to the ecosystem
of the rainforests of the region, and to the threats
to its very survival. In doing so, they enable us to
see ways forward. The works that they have created
will encourage visitors to the exhibition to see that
this magnificent and inherently valuable species must
not be allowed to slide into extinction without a concerted
effort to ensure its continued existence.
Mollie
Bosworth, Susan Doherty, Barbara Dover, Terry Eager,
Margaret Genever, Gerhard Hillmann and Arone Meeks
have each engaged with the subject from their own perspective,
and using their own creative language to enunciate
the issues with clarity. They have created innovative
and thought provoking works which will serve as an
inspiration to visitors to the gallery. The Cairns
Regional Gallery has recognized the importance of this
initiative and supported it, as have the Myer Foundation
and the Wet Tropics Management Authority. And this
catalogue, funded by the Queensland Government and
the Cairns Regional Council through the Regional Arts
Development Fund, will serve not only as a record of
the event, but a permanent reminder of the plight of
the cassowary and the need for all of us to take actions
to promote its’ survival.
Laurel
McKenzie
CURATOR
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