Suspended in the newly constructed spiral stairwells of the Memorial, two glass sculptures shimmer, casting dynamic shadows across the space. These breathtaking installations were hand-made by artist, Annette Blair at Glassworks Canberra.
The glassworks installation which is over top of the spiral stairs, I think is a real addition to the Memorial and I think it adds a lot to the visitor experience of being able to - I would hope – go up in the east and come back down in the western stairwell.
Having also a local company deliver that glasswork I think is a real benefit to the project as well.
From concept development and design, we’ve sort of had about five to six months to work on this project.
A lot of that initial work was in design and prototyping and figuring out how we were going to hang this artwork. Then we launched into production where a big team of local glass makers helped me to make close to 2,000 leaves all up.
I really wanted to work well with the space which consists of the two separate stairwells.
My main concern was to make a unified artwork that worked well individually as well as together with its pair on the other side.
Annette Blair is an Australian glass artist with a practice spanning over 20 years. Blair creates and produces work for herself, as well as fabricating glass for other high-profile artists. Speaking of her approach, she noted, “My personal work has always been inspired by memories and connections to both people and place.”
The artworks, Quiet skies, as the sun rises and Quiet skies, as the sun sets, were made specifically for this location, which joins the new Main Entrance foyer with the original structure. Handmade from hot-sculpted glass, and based on the colours of sunset and sunrise, each work contains approximately 900 glass eucalypt leaves.
The western sculpture, Quiet skies, as the sun sets, reflects the closing of the day and features red and orange hues.
