Gregory Hodge, Seascape, 2024. Acrylic on linen. 200cm x 160 cm. Photo by Gregory Copitet.

The Water Understands takes Ralph Waldo Emerson’s poem ‘Water’ as a starting point. In the poem, Emerson imbues the element of water with subjective human experiences – understanding, heartbreak, wit, the ability to destroy, and alternatively the ability to enjoy pleasure. It is the understanding, or the water’s metaphorical ability to imbue us with knowledge, which is at the core of this exhibition – knowledge of the past, cultural knowledge, traditional knowledge, poetic knowledge, political knowledge, and aesthetic knowledge.

The artists selected for The Water Understands work within a broad range of cultural narratives, and using different media, allowing for an exhibition that thoroughly interrogates the metaphorical qualities of water from multiple perspectives.

This exhibition is part of MAG&M’s CEAD Collective for Environmental Art & Design initiative.

Featuring: Leah Bullen, Michael Cook, Tamara Dean, Keg de Souza, Shaun Gladwell, Phillip George, Gregory Hodge, Miguel Angelo Libarnes, Anna Madeleine Raupach, Douglas Schofield, Angela Tiatia.

Opening night: 12 December 2024, 6 – 8pm.