Seven Days’ Work – Ewing & George Paton Galleries, Melbourne University, Australia. July 1977.

The gallery architecture divided the space into five small rectangular cubicles. I made use of this layout and the work took the form of five separate, but interrelated, installations. All the materials came from the gallery storeroom and a nearby art department waste bin. The installations were accompanied by a large selection of drawings. Throughout the seven days, visitors to the gallery could watch the work grow, and discuss and contribute to the working process. The exhibition continued for a further two weeks.

Beside each installation was a brief note.

Anatomy of the fisherman who never catches fish.

This is a glimpse of him. Two sides of his character: dog and fox. The course of his life; decisions he has to make; trails he has to follow and leave behind; the silent fish gliding by; the sound of another silvery presence flicking its tail and diving; the precise ladder of his knowledge – which he doesn’t need to climb anymore. Why climb, when you can fly? Why catch fish, when you have no appetite?

The burning table.

A lot of the time we look at things through a filter of words and preconceptions. Like a screen of gaily coloured streamers they seduce us with their charm and colour. But there are moments when the sheer presence of something seems remarkable. We wake up to this world in all its vividness. The fact of being here is like suddenly catching fire. Here are the ashes of one of those moments.

Which road goes to Fuji?

There are countless roads and countless Fujis. This is the timeless puzzle we all have to solve. We are the puzzle, the solution and Mount Fuji.

The silence of mountains, the stillness of sand.

Brown earth, blue sky. Green vegetation, grey rock, white snow. The blue curve of an ocean wave. Delicate pale sand. The touch of dark wood in cool mountain air.