• Where do we belong in the expansiveness of the Universe?
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Forever stretches on from this point to all other points in time and space. The expansiveness that forever implies is also encompassed by the space we exist within, the Universe. 

We feel big living in our own heads. But as soon as we place ourselves in our body, in our house, in our city, in our country, in our Earth, in our solar system, in our Milky Way, in our galaxy, and so on, we start to feel small. Whilst this is true, we are small, it is also important to know we belong.

Artist Gavin Wanganeen has been contemplating the Universe and our place in it. His artwork, Star Dreaming in Motion, positions us above the skies, amongst the stars and space, looking through to Country. As you observe the kinetic and changing sculpture created by Gavin and design studio Exhibition Studios in our Foyer space, your perspective of the Universe and our place within it may also shift.

Gavin Wanganeen is a former AFL Player, two time Premiership winner, member of the AFL Hall of Fame and Brownlow Medalist. He is now working as an Artist, painting stories that remind him of his Aboriginal heritage. His paintings have inspired and been incorporated into a kinetic sculpture in the Foyer space of MOD.

The subject matter of his original ‘Shooting Star’ series of paintings followed a summertime camping holiday. Gavin and his wife Pippa saw what they thought was a firecracker lighting up the night sky. Rather, it was a shooting star. These carry tremendous importance in Dreaming stories told by Gavin’s Kokatha people. For Gavin, it was an unforgettable moment that has stayed with him, informing his art. His paintings show Gavin’s unique view of looking through the Universe, down to Country – 

‘I imagine myself at the highest point of the Universe, gazing down through the stars, to Country. The dots represent the stars and the colour represents my connection to Country. My Aboriginality comes from my mother’s side, which is the Kokatha people of the Western Desert where I grew up before I moved to Adelaide when I was six years old.’’

As you enter the MOD. building you can view the kinetic sculpture created by Gavin and Exhibition Studios. It hangs between our ground, first and second levels. The sculpture floats in space, breathing with motion. This movement emulates the known Universe reaching further into space. Collaborating Artist Karl Meyer says, ‘The movement of the sculpture expresses the notion that we see through a Universe that’s expanding. If we could truly comprehend the speed and vector that our planet moves through space, we would likely be overwhelmed, but it feels calm and it’s ok. In the ceaseless motion of the Universe there is rest and quiet.’

Circular discs with Gavin’s paintings printed on them also make up the sculpture. These discs encourage a look inwards, looking down through the Universe to Country. Providing a link to the place we belong.

To view the sculpture, feel free to explore beyond the Ground floor, up to the first and second levels. Looking at the piece from multiple perspectives may encourage your own perspective shift.

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