Michelle Gait

VIRTUAL TOUR

ARTIST CATALOGUE

CLEARING

“The wilderness is the element in which we live enclosed in civilisation, as a mollusk lives in his shell in the sea” – Wendell Berry, 1971

Traditionally, ‘nature’ has been viewed as that which is separate from humanity. This false divide pits humans at odds with their environment and has contributed to the damage we have inflicted on the ecosystems in which we live. I have inherited a planet which bears the scars of generations before me. 

The question of inheritance led me to investigate my Dutch family heritage. I am fascinated by the concept of the shard: history unearthed and pieced together, yet never fully known. My work references Delftware, traditional blue and white Dutch porcelainware. Brought to the Cape by the VOC, Delftware has a complex colonial history. Colonial systems and hunting practices saw the devastation of ecosystems and the displacement of people and animals. 

Delftware is a framework that I understand, while nature is a framework that I find difficult to understand. Through my work, I attempt to understand my personal relationship with ‘nature’ and ‘the wilderness’. Earlier this year, a night time encounter with a hyaena made me realise that nature is not only beautiful and peaceful, but also dangerous and beyond our control. 

The installation is inspired by a fantastical ecosystem, with ceramic organisms interacting with and sustaining each other in various stages of life, growth, and decay. These organisms have been touched by Delftware: impacted, changed, and transformed by human legacy. Their delicateness reflects our fragile and precarious place in the age of the Anthropocene.