Sharon Kirk’s artistic practice investigates the intersection between humans and the natural environment. Her interest in exploring representations of place stretches back to childhood when her family moved to a cattle property situated on Garingbal and Bidjara Country in Central Queensland near Carnarvon Gorge, an area renowned for its extensive rock art sites. Kirk attributes this proximity to significant and sacred sites of First Nations’ creative expression accumulated over thousands of years as the catalyst for her interest in how human presence remains embodied in place both as tangible trace and intangible memory.
Kirk works directly with elements and processes from the natural environment rather than representing landscape figuratively. She allows the site itself to inform the work’s development by incorporating organic matter and earth pigments combined with various mark-making and layering techniques including eco-printing. The resultant works conjure a sense of the artist’s response to place through their materiality and process of construction, recording the artist’s presence and interaction within the landscape over time.
Kirk completed her Bachelor of Fine Art through Curtin University in 2019. She has been organising and participating in art exhibitions and competitions in Central Queensland for over 15 years and her work has been acquired by both Springsure and Emerald Art Gallery. Recent achievements include winning first place for three-dimensional works in the 2021 Brigalow Arts Festival, and her recent solo exhibition, Journey to the Unknown, was held in Springsure in 2019. She is an active member of Central Queensland Contemporary Artists and Latitude 23 artists collective.
Read Kirk's essay(PDF, 959KB) reflecting on her residency in the Collection Study Room at Rockhampton Museum of Art.
Listen to Kirk's podcast conversation reflecting on her residency on Behind The Art, RMOA's podcast.
Image: Sharon Kirk creating artwork during her residency at RMOA.
This project was made possible by the Australian Government’s Regional Arts Fund, provided through Regional Arts Australia, administered in Queensland by Flying Arts Alliance.