With strong socio-political content the question remains as to whether Ormella’s own visual contribution to Australia’s culture can resist being adopted for a cause and continue as a critique of the overly romanticised imagery that has defined many activist causes over time.. Raquel Ormella
Ormella’s large banner, originally exhibited at Canberra Contemporary Art Space in 2007 for the “Territorial” exhibition, is based on the Australian flag but not a literal description. Its reference to a nationalistic object points to a political comment on Howard’s propensity for double speak, which paved the way for bureaucratic small mindedness and the marginalisation of that which is “unaustralian”.. Raquel Ormella
Ormella’s installation “Poster Reproduction” eloquently articulates her concerns about how environmental groups, such as the Wilderness Society, employ visual imagery in their campaigns.. Raquel Ormella
Ormella’s latest series of images consisting of acrylic paint on digital prints continues to probe why the environment is consistently referenced as a way to define the Australian national psyche.. Raquel Ormella
The installation plays the two scenes off each other suggesting that Roger’s photograph depicting one of Australia’s “pure bush” locations is a mere tool alongside the other campaign apparatus, not a conduit to one of Australia’s last bastions of wilderness.. Raquel Ormella
While Ormella actively supports many sociopolitical and environmental causes, she is also aware of how easily visual imagery can be manipulated to serve a particular purpose.. Raquel Ormella
“130 Davey Street arose from my attempts to work both as an artist and activist with Australia’s oldest and largest grassroots environmental activist organization, the Wilderness Society. The Wilderness Society has successfully protected many of Australia’s wilderness areas, in particular in the most southern state, the island of Tasmania.”. Raquel Ormella
Ormella is fascinated with “why contemporary Australia insists on the idea that wilderness is separate and untouched landscape rather than a concept that reflects human values”.. Raquel Ormella
“Poster Reproduction” consists of an electronic whiteboard that alternates between two drawings. One shows the interior of the Wilderness Society’s office, the other a drawn reproduction of a Catherine Rogers photograph of an ancient eucalyptus, which has been used by campaigners as an emotive symbol to muster public support for the halting of logging in Tasmania.. Raquel Ormella
“‘Varied, noisy” is a series of multiples (including: limited edition records, woven badges, a field guide zine and postcards) that describes the presence and absence within local landscapes of the Indian (Common) Myna, an imported feral bird regarded as one of Australia’s worst environmental threats.”. Raquel Ormella
Raquel Ormella in-situ with the installation 130 Davey Street.. Raquel Ormella
Raquel Ormella’s “130 Davey Street” is a drawing installation comprised of a collection of whiteboards. Embedded within Ormella’s drawings are illustrations of photographs and paintings – images by Australian photographers and artists that became synonymous with the Wilderness Society’s conservation movement in Tasmania.. Raquel Ormella
