Wave exhibition at Art Gallery of South Australia

Titled WAVE, ceramicist Gerry Wedd's mythic imagery is brought to life in an 360-degree installation, accompanied by an evocative soundscape by Gabriella Smart and directed by Wedd, Smart and filmmaker Mark Patterson with digital production by Jumpgate VR.

Comprised of three acts, WAVE invites visitors on an epic journey from sea to sky inspired by a major new ceramic urn created by Wedd - following the tradition of 'narrative pottery' which was used as a form of storytelling in antiquity.

The work starts with Wedd's urn spinning like a globe, inviting viewers into a landscape before European invasion, and abundant with life. The second act sees the 'arrival' of a strange new reality, whereby vast urbanisation gives way to bushfires that rage, coastlines that collapse, and waterways that choke. In the final act, a great wave redeems all and renewal begins.

Art Gallery of South Australia director Rhana Devenport ONZM said audiences will be swept along in this experiential and extraordinary work which unexpectedly melds low-tech mediums with digital technology.

"Bringing Wedd's motifs to life through CGI animation, WAVE offers a powerful commentary about human impact upon the natural world, with a distinctly local visual language that sees harpies meld with black cockatoos and dingoes transform into domesticated dogs."

Inspired by their local environment, Smart, Wedd and Patterson reside and create on South Australia's Fleurieu Peninsula.

Wedd has lived on the Fleurieu Peninula for more than 50 years.

"For much of my life I have hung around the edge where the water meets the land, and human-made detritus is ever more visible," he said.

"My concept for WAVE was to subvert the familiar and benign medium of blue and white porcelain to tease out a narrative of climate destruction, plunging viewers into a wondrous world that retains the lustrous look of glaze and the malleable tension of clay.

"As someone who normally works in 2D and 3D, WAVE opens up new visual and narrative possibilities for my practice. It is certainly the most collaborative project I have been involved with where each moment is a liaison between myself, composer Gabriella Smart, producer Mark Patterson and Carlo and Anton Andreacchio from Jumpgate VR."

WAVE will take over Gallery 1 of the Elder Wing of Australian Art in a 360-degree immersive film experienced on a four-metre high, seven-metre circumference screen. WAVE is on display at the gallery from 19 October 2022 to 8 January 2023, free entry.