Collection: REFLECTIONS OF A PIANO

I suppose in a way the piano became the accidental protagonist of this series.

A beach holiday in Brunswick Heads revealed a piano in a shed known as the Sound Shell where the public could play, tinker, listen and create song. The piano had been surreptitiously donated in the middle of the night and the community were touched and delighted. As was I, as I listened one rainy morning while a lady played tunes in solitude and the rain pattered down in the background.

You can imagine my surprise when I learned there had been plans to remove the piano for fear of being a public nuisance or a vehicle for vandalism. Music! From a piano!! No amps or microphones or electrical cords in sight to fuel any volume or scorn. I felt irritated and angry that this gift of humanity was in question and began ruminating on how society had reached such confined approaches to living and community.

And thus, the research and paintings began and the characters and stories grew. Nature, culture, digital environments, community and social media all brought to my attention by the piano in the Sound Shell. And together through a mutual love of song and storytelling, the piano and I reflected on the values we hold in society and the values we seem to be losing. Sometimes literal and other times whimsical this series ponders what it means to be human today and how we prioritise our time.

“I got on fine with modern living, but must I be such a citizen” Jack Wild by Spoon (Alternative American rock band)

Shipping available open request.