Shield of Antarctica

Tangaroa / Water

"As climate change threatens to alter Antarctica irreparably, Graham's Shield of Antarctica is a supplication to guard our environment against destruction. Marked by converging grooves and a marbled lacquer coating, this disc-shaped wooden sculpture borrows from customary Māori carving traditions. While the work is imposing in its stasis, when approached its lines appear to advance and retreat in an optical illusion, imparting a sense of urgency to Graham's serious plea for environmental protection. He has created a chillingly beautiful, finely grooved, spherical wooden shield of protection for a beleaguered continent." (National Gallery of Victoria)