ASTRA PARKER

Her works are drawn from a fascination with natural structures and their inherent processes of change through time. These processes are reflected in both her sculpture techniques and in her organic biomorphic forms.With her focus on nature’s ability to self-replicate her works take forms which, being deliberately ambiguous are both botanical and anatomical such as forms resembling a seed pod, cocoon or egg.

Astra works from George Street Studios at Thebarton creating sculpture predominantly in steel and stone. She has exhibited widely since obtaining her Bachelor of Visual Art and Design in 2009 and has works in public and private collections within Australia and China.

Her works are often intricately constructed through a detailed process of segmenting a material in to multiple units, reshaping and reconfiguring the units before fusion into a new created structure.

“I am interested in natural systems and their efficiency to self-organise, in particular regeneration processes such as cell division and multiplication, seed germination or the opening of a cocoon or pod to release new life. My work is a reflection on this, both in form and in the processes of making.”

Text courtesy Hill Smith Gallery.