Penelope Davis, Sea-Change, Arup Gallery, 2018

Penelope Davis, Sea-change (2016), at Arup Gallery, 2018-19. A Soda Arts exhibition. Images: Arup.

CLIENT Arup, Sydney
ARTIST Penelope Davis
SERVICES Strategic Consultant & Exhibition Curator
ARTIST REPRESENTATION MARS Gallery
DATE 12 Oct 2018 - 15 Feb 2019

DESCRIPTION We were engaged by Arup to help them articulate a vision and curate the launch exhibition for the new Arup Gallery. Located inside the just-completed Arup Sydney offices, Arup Gallery is a private gallery with the soul of a public institution. Non-commercial and non-acquisition, Arup Gallery has been conceived as a space for the exchange of ideas, where the work of contemporary artists will live alongside staff to discuss, provoke and inspire.

Following a detailed scoping and research process, the selected launch exhibition was Sea-change by prominent Melbourne-based artist Penelope Davis. Jellyfish are creatures that exponentially multiply in environmental conditions that are disastrous for other marine life, such as the the warm oxygen-deprived waters caused by climate change. To Davis, these creatures are a beautifully ominous warning sign about what our oceans could look like in a world ravaged by climate change.

From a distance, the sculptures resemble jellyfish. Upon closer inspection it is apparent that they are made from silicon casts of discarded plastic rubbish such as phone chargers, plastic bottle tops and defunct electrical wares. Presented as an immersive installation of 50 suspended sculptures, Sea-change is a thoughtful meditation on the impact of human consumption and waste.