HANNAH BRONTË
Hannah BRONTË
Pisces King 2019
sand, gum leaves, video (duration 4 minutes, 21 seconds)
Brisbane/Meanjin-based artist and DJ Hannah Brontë, draws upon her Wakka Wakka, Yaegl, and Welsh bloodlines to intertwine the knowledge of all her female ancestors in her work. Pisces King (2019) is an installation of video, sand and gum leaves that celebrate connection to home and her people through the ocean. By drifting in unison across the currents of the ocean, the artist is interconnected to ancestors through place and time.
‘We return to each other in waves,
This is how water loves’
This portrait series is called “Pisces King”. The ocean is a big part of our connection and a place we both feel completely free and ourselves. It binds us to both of our ancestors and clears everything away from the outside world. Her island and my peoples waters share the same ocean. Sometimes this world can be exhausting when even expressing affection to one another can make us unsafe. So gurrigarang (the ocean) is always somewhere to wash the outside world off.
The ocean is a constant throughout time. All eras and walks of people have passed through the sea so I feel this deep sense of power and safety with the ocean. This image captures a moment where she is achieving her present, dreaming of her future and staying grounded from her past all in the arms of the sea.
Hannah Brontë