A few months ago I started work in this piece and it has been kicking around the studio since then. I held off dissolving the piece purely because I knew it would be a nightmare to dissolve and mount. But last week I bit the bullet and after many frustrating hours of trying to control and shape 2 layers of stringy black thread I have this new piece 'Birds on Barren Branches' (73 x 73cm framed).

The piece has been inspired by the dead gum tree's that I regularly see on my travels on the edges of bush or farmland. I have always liked the silhouetted shapes of dead gums as they reach into the sky, so solid in their presence while being so devoid of life. These trees are always a favorite hang out spot for flocks of birds and these animals are like little specks of life on the otherwise barren branches. The tree's are like giant skeletons or monuments to the huge once thriving tree that has died, relics amongst the still living fields. The juxtaposition of dead wood and roosting birds suggests to me that these giant trees still have much to offer and will have a place in the land for many more years to come.