passing from the edge of memory to the night sky 2007

In passing from the edge of memory to the night sky, successive waves of indigo overlap to form an intense field of blue. It depicts the night sky as seen from Waanyi country in far-north-western Queensland, the homeland of Watson’s grandmother, who passed away as the work was being made. The celestial blue is haunted by the transit of a misty, veiled figure ascending into the sky. Watson has often used silhouetted figures in her paintings, recalling those found in both painted and engraved rock art in many parts of Indigenous Australia; this device signals the persistence of Aboriginal presence as well as suggesting a kind of spiritual power. The painting is a tribute to Watson’s grandmother, and an evocation of the way in which someone can surrender the presence of a loved one to the wider universe.