Artist Statement

These photographs form part of a series which started during a residency at Red Gate Gallery in Beijing in April 2012, and which continued back in Sydney. The Willows & Wires images were shot on a bright windy day in Beijing when everything seemed electric, however the ideas behind them started germinating on the flight from Sydney.

As we made our way north across the top end of Australia I was captivated by the sight of the waterways created by the recent rains. They appeared as masses of dark scribbly lines, slowly flowing south to Lake Eyre.

Then arriving in Beijing, I was similarly struck by the stark linear qualities of the bare winter trees and then by the masses of electrical wires up above and amongst the trees.

Finally, turning out the lights at night, the white walls of my apartment sprang to life with projected moving images, made by car headlights, of winter trees and branches, forming myriad linear patterns.

Catherine Cloran 2012