A pile of timber recently clear-felled from the dense forests of the Solomon Islands. eX de ...

Accession Number P11527.026
Collection type Photograph
Object type Digital file
Maker eX de Medici
Place made Pacific Islands: Solomon Islands, Guadalcanal, Vilu
Date made March 2009
Conflict Solomon Islands (RAMSI), 2003-2013
Copyright

Item copyright: AWM Licensed copyright

Description

A pile of timber recently clear-felled from the dense forests of the Solomon Islands. eX de Medici was disturbed by the massive culling of natural resources by foreign investors, she highlights the destruction of natural resources in her artwork 'Tetanus' [ART94226] and 'Vilu Military Museum' [ART94156]. The Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with troops from New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Tonga formed the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI). The RAMSI peacekeeping mission has been present in the Solomon Islands since 2003. eX de Medici was sent to the Solomon Islands in March 2009 as an Australian War Memorial official artists during one of the wettest weeks of the year. Continual downpour restricted her ability to paint or sketch on site. De Medici relied on journal records and hundreds of photographs of her observations and experiences to produce her artwork. Stitching together elements from numerous photographs, de Medici created a series of artworks that does not reflect a particular location, instead merges historical and contemporary motifs revealing the uncertain future of the Solomon Islands.