Janet Laurence's A Medicinal Garden For Ailing Plants

Imagine being able to reveal all your thoughts; all the images, memories and beliefs that are floating around inside your head for all the world to observe and understand. Imagine being able to create a little piece of you. This is exactly what both Modern and Post-Modern artists are able to do. Artists create what they love, enjoy, believe and observe. They create a piece of themselves; it may be the way they see things in their imagination, it may be the way it is in reality, never the less each and every master piece conveys a small piece of the artist. “Every good painter paints what he is”. This philosophy stated by Jackson Pollock out lines the idea that many contemporary modern artworks incorporate certain colours, textures, space, signs,

Being a strong environmentalist Janet Laurence questions conventional values about the relationship between humanity and the natural world. The idea that nature will heal itself without mainstream human attitudes and behaviour is what Laurence was hoping to convey. Laurence uses her art to draw attention to the beauty of the natural world and her beliefs in mother nature becoming modified and fake by the use of humanity. This work also echo’s earlier investigations on displaying and cultivating plants that have been removed from their original environment. The natural world is in need of healing and protection. Theses beliefs and messages are mainly seen with the artist’s choice of materials and use of symbolism. This work also described as a ‘plant hospital’ has many glass shelves supporting plants intertwined in and around scientific glass ware. Installations of this nature require audiences to experience the work by putting the pieces together to seek meanings which are not immediately clear. In this work plants are the focus both sculpturally and symbolically. Laurence uses man-made scientific medical creations as a contradiction to the natural way of healing plants. She uses objects with irony; objects such as oxygen masks and food supplement tubes. Ironically we are dependant on plants in

He is also known to be one of the most experimental bark painters from Arnhem Land NT. Mawurndjul grew up in the Western Arnhem Land region of Australia, that is alive with the art of previous generations and is filled with extremely influential history. His art is a key element in the renewal of all the Kuninjku culture. He paints about his life at Milmilngkan and the regions history. The shifting of Government threatened their existence and Mawurndjul uses his spirituality, tribal beliefs and dream time stories to represent the existing culture of Milmilngkan. Positive changes to the Western Arnhem Land lifestyle, including the support of Arts and Culture style, has enabled Mawurndjul to express himself. With the use of traditional motifs in innovative ways Mawurndjul’s express his spirituality, cultural faith and values. Mawurndjul’s common subjects are ngalyod (rainbow serpent), namarrkon (lightning), mother's country (kakodbebuldi), (female mermaid spirits), ngalyod (attacking human ancestor beings). All of which are a part of his Aboriginal cultural and Dreamtime spirituality. The art work ‘Njaljod - the rainbow serpent’ is an example of a painting that resembles Mawurndjul’s identity. This work is created on bark that was formed in the space of his child hood. It replicates the spiritual entities from Dreamtime stories such as the rainbow serpent in its snake form. This work is created in the dot and