Ferric Coruscation
Railway Street Gallery
October 2018
Unravelling the Heart of Spring, Acrylic on panel, 620 x 670 mm
Ferric Coruscation
Ferric - of or containing iron
Coruscation - to give forth flashes of light; sparkle, glimmer, glint
Ferric Coruscation here refers to the process of iron oxidising as it rusts and breaks down. Utilised as a metaphor for the cycle of life, there is a beauty in decay as elements change and shift into new forms. As a young child Sonja lived across the road from the wild surf beach at Tora, in the South Wairarapa, where she was intrigued by the rusting wreck of the SS Opua lodged on the rocks among the breakers just offshore, shipwrecked in 1926.
The work is inspired by the natural world on both the macro and the micro scale.I develop visual narratives as I paint, which reflect my interest in the state of the natural world in the current age, this period during which human activity has had a significant global impact on Earth’s geology and ecosystems. On the micro scale, I consider the impact of environmental stressors on gene expression and how this manifests in humanity.
The Flood, acrylic on board, 800 x 800mm
Elemental, Acrylic on board, 1000 x 1500mm
Te Waihou - the Source to the Sea, acrylic on board, 400 x 1600mm
Phantom Limbs, Acrylic on board, 400 x 400mm
Passing Through, Acrylic on board, 1000 x 670mm