Curating BIG Sculpture in The VegOut Community Garden was not dissimilar to organising a meeting of two great minds. Two great industrious and creative minds, both independent yet both committed to engaging with community. The curatorial challenge was to have them engage in a spirit of mutual respect and acknowledgment of one another’s achievement.
The achievements of the sculptors exhibited are without question, the breadth of inventiveness and the masterful manipulation of their chosen materials shout with the Joy of aesthetic enquiry and the triumph hard labour. And the Gardens describe a not dissimilar accomplishment. A walk through this productive yet peaceful oasis, observing the variety and wonder of its evolving design, describe the pleasure and industry of those who have made, over a period of twenty years, what it is today.
In bringing the two together the visitor is offered the opportunity to witness a very special encounter. One which we are invited to observe; one in which we can participate; one to which we can listen; one from which we can learn.
The sculptors here represented are known, or are bound to be known, as great practitioners in their field. In an age where utility is champion, they will hopefully inspire other sculptors and students of sculpture to develop their practice. So too do the Gardens, known across this great nation as being the benchmark for what can be saved from the ever-increasing appetite of urban developers, be a Garden that other future community gardeners aspire to.
BIG Sculpture has come to the heart of St Kilda. In the heart is The Garden.
Adrian Spurr, 2019.
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