02. 08. 2016
Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Artist: Robert Petchell l Sasha Gribch l Catherine Murphy l Cath Cantlon l Emily Steel
A series of audios, transcripts, musical score and script, films and etched glasses from interviews that tell positive stories of resilience in the face of the impacts of climate change
A series of interviews were conducted with eight primary producers and children from the Milang Primary school. Each of those interviewed conveyed positive stories of resilience in the face of impacts of climate change.
This research became the basis for the development of several other projects. Selected quotes from the interviews and workshops were etched in glasses and this glassware was subsequently used at the national arts conference Kumuwuki and the Long Lunch.
Emily Steel ran a series of workshops with the Milang and District Community Association (MDCA) to assist with the narrative development of their play ‘Murray the Musical’. Musician Robert Petchell recorded some of the music and songs. ‘Murray the Musical’ tells the story of a turtle affected by the drought, the political power plays during the drought and community resilience.
TURTLES
LAKE
TREES
Partner Outcomes
- sharing of innovative water management practices by landholders
- a range of media promoting environmental protection to the community
- material for the development of future public arts and environment initiatives
the ‘Necessity is the Mother of Invention’ project formed the initial research for the Long Lunch, a lunch for revegetation volunteers of the Murray and Lower Lakes System and Drawing on Country. Click here to see the Change & Adaptation project map
Matthew Bennett