Art Projects

“For scientists, conservationists, researchers and those in the broader environment community, the challenge of securing stronger protection and more funding for Australia’s threatened flora and fauna is made tougher by the fact that much of the population does not realise that the wildlife the country prides itself on is in trouble.”

The Guardian Australia 13 February 2018

We live in the global era of the Anthropocene, where in this ‘age of man’ our species is having an overwhelming influence on our planet and its wildlife. Australia has one of the world’s highest extinction rates.

The hyper realistic paper taxidermy sculptures which comprise the Now You See Us project and exhibition have been on show during 2020 at the National Wool Museum Geelong. They aim to elicit an emotional connection and response to this ecological crisis which is going on all around us. They are just some examples of the 84 species of threatened birds listed by the State Wide Integrated Flora and Fauna Team (SWIFFT) whose habitat is the City of Greater Geelong. Many of the species are also threatened across the state of Victoria.

The School of Lost Arts’ Director, artist Dr Mary-Jane Walker started the Now You See Us bird project and together with fellow artists, Jen Tostevin and Rob Cuttler aims to highlight how the Anthropocene is playing out at the local level and the scale of the current threat to our wildlife and what we can do about it. The birds are made from recycled and other papers with steel skeletons where required. All 84 birds will be made.

The focus of the project is a positive one; it hopes to raise the profile of this issue and offer a call to action. It is about making people think about how they can support these species through research and conservation efforts. It also highlights the activities that City Councils and other local authorities could and are doing in the conservation of native bird habitats. Time is running out for many of these beautiful and unique birds, the opportunity to save them is now.

Brolga
(Grus rubicunda)

Spotted Harrier
(Circus assimilis)

Major Mitchell’s Cockatoo
(Lophochroa leadbeateri)

The listings of threatened species in the
City of Greater Geelong alone are:

• 84 species of threatened birds

• 9 species of threatened mammals

• 5 species of threatened fish

• 3 species of threatened reptiles

• 2 species of threatened amphibians

• 4 species of threatened invertebrates

Note : This was the number of species listed at the time of project commencement. Listing numbers can change with classification changes

This list has been compiled by the State-Wide Integrated Flora and Fauna Team or SWIFFT. This organisation is a network and an initiative supported by Federation University Australia, the Ballarat Environment Network and the Victorian Department of Environment Land Water and Planning.

SWIFFT is about maintaining, developing and sharing knowledge and skills within Victorian communities for the protection and management of threatened species and biodiversity conservation.

The Alphabet Bird Project is an environmental art project for Year 4 students in the Greater Geelong area. The aim is to inspire children and their families to learn about the 26 threatened river and wetland birds of our region.

Our region is rich in bird, mammal, reptile, amphibian, and insect species, but in many cases urban expansion is putting their survival at risk. We can and should share our environment with wildlife – both for their benefit and ours.

Despite the ecological challenges we face, it is very important we remain optimistic. There is a lot we can do to support the long-term survival of threatened species. For children, acting on a local level to raise awareness can be a very empowering experience.

Each child involved in the project will create an artwork of one of our region’s 26 threatened bird species. The birds will go into a collective display that will be shown at the Geelong Nature Forum, at the National Wool Museum, from 28 March to 3 April 2020.

Dr Mary-Jane Walker, the creator of the Alphabet Bird Project, and Dr Luke Keogh, Senior Curator at the National Wool Museum (NWM) created an immersive experience to showcase the work of school students who were part of the Alphabet Bird Project. It was shown as part of the Geelong Nature Forum during the September 2021 School Holidays.