Water[shed]

An exhibition conceived by OUTSIDE THE BOX / Earth Arts Rights and presented in collaboration with Bett Gallery to support the Restore Pedder campaign. The staging of the water[shed] from 5 August - 27 August 2022 coincides with the 50th anniversary of the last heart-breaking summer in 1972 when dams on the Huon and Serpentine Rivers were closed and the impounded waters began to rise. Lake Pedder along with over 242 square kilometres of wild landscape in the heart of lutruwita (Tasmania) was swallowed up. The original lake is not forgotten. This 50-year anniversary of loss also coincides with the first year of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021–2030. water[shed] brings together 50 Australian and international artists exploring the ideas of ecosystem restoration, re-wilding grief, loss and celebration of the original Lake Pedder. | Bett Gallery

On a misty winter’s day, we drive west headed for a lake we will not see. A lake that exists in our imagination, revered through images and stories from those that have been before. Instead, we arrive to a new shore, where with nature’s persistence tiny beaches take hold, a haunting reminder of what once was. The day is crisp and still, but the sun breaks through, warming and lulling us into silence. The mountains’ reflections conceal a beloved treasure, below the water's surface. In the changing light, the land reveals its quiet beauty. We stand, uncertain. Trying to piece it together, to recreate in our minds the way it was, to wrestle with the extent of human impact and to contemplate our hopes for the future. | Michaye Boulter and Linda Fredheim