Unpick the patriarchy

Shelter isn’t just a human right, it’s also a responsibility humans hold for the ecosystems we live in and depend on. As we face the consequences of man-made climate catastrophe, we are called on to change our beliefs, attitudes and actions towards our ecosystems. This exhibition explores some of these relationships and how they might be preserved, repaired and reshaped to provide shelter for a more sustainable future for all living things.

Months after a bushfire ravaged a beautiful valley near my home, I received a postcard from the Red Cross with a picture of two men in wet weather gear looking out across a flooded river. The headline made me reflect on how well-prepared we are as a society for climate catastrophe. It read:

“When extreme weather is the new norm, would you know what to do if disaster struck?”

When the disaster struck in my small regional town, five hours drive from a capital city, there was no safe place anywhere in 75kms. This exhibition explores why that is so, and how we might take different action to protect everyone in our society from climate threat ahead.

On International Women’s Day 2019, the Australian Prime Minister explained equality. From his perspective, anyway.

“We want to see women rise but we don’t want to see women rise on the basis of others doing worse.”

— Scotty from Marketing

Incensed, I picked up my needle.

RISE! is an interactive space that explores why women’s financial agency is so fraught and fragile.

It juxtaposes familiar domestic items with harrowing statistics about financial inequality — and does so on a grand scale.

In 2015, the former President of the United States explained entitlement to a reporter. Inadvertently, of course.

“When you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab’em by the pussy. You can do anything.”

— 46th POTUS

The sneering disrespect for women stung. And after working as a consultant to leaders in the corporate sector for 30 years, where a woman’s coat is her suit of armour, it felt familiar. Coats for Courage explores identity, financial archetypes, and women’s financial agency. It’s a safe space to reflect on — and maybe even re-write — your own money story.