Crossroads

About The Exhibition

Crossroads Rochelle Summerfield explores environmental loss and transformation and its impact on the human condition through a series of drawings and multimedia works. Each work reflects the experiences and emotions that Summerfield faced when confronted by the drought-stricken Macquarie River and its riparian landscape.  Instead of a river downstream, she found a barren, dry riverbed.  Two hauntingly beautiful and stoic Macquarie River Gums stood exposed, with their entangled history of root systems reaching out for water.  Where water once flowed, now the bright green of the Noogoora Burr is thriving in this bare dirt. 

The exhibition aims to reconnect people to our precious river systems and deeply appreciate their value, beyond economics.  Rochelle says “Our rivers are the lifeline to a multitude of communities- people, wildlife and habitat. When we connect with the natural habitat, we feel a lightness of spirit and improve our health and well-being.  Humans benefit from rich biodiverse landscapes.”

Her works ask us to come to our own understanding of the value we place on our natural environment. Ultimately Crossroads is a show that asks us to reflect on the choices we make moving forward; as we enter a new realm where the loss that is occurring may be irreversible. At the heart of it all Summerfield wants us to reflect on the consequences of a future that could potentially worsen, and that each one of us has a part to play in this greater narrative.