THE
ROOKERY
artists' collective

This exploration of impermanence by TRAC artists has given rise to diverse work, in a variety of media,  exploring the idea that all things will arise, evolve and change before decaying and ultimately disappearing. 

A number of artists have been inspired by the city we live in. The solidity of buildings giving us an illusion of security; but the weeds pushing up through the cracks in the pavement hint at the reality that the city will not be here forever. The changing cityscape reminds everyone who looks up of who wields power and how that has shifted over time.  Once cathedrals and church spires dominated the skyline, drawing attention to the power of God and the Church, today those are overshadowed by skyscrapers that reflect the power of money and commerce. 

Other artists have turned to Nature, which on the surface seems more permanent. Trees have been around longer than the cities, but at twilight the day fades, emphasising that they too will decay and disappear. Flowers bloom each spring but then die in the cycle of the seasons but even that seemingly constant rhythm is not guaranteed to continue forever.  

People are the subject of other work. How our brief lives leave echos that can still be heard.  Figures dissolve and fade away in the places they once inhabited and when life ends, those left behind have to work through their grief and grow a new and changed life around the one that has now disappeared forever. 

It is not only in our external lives that we grapple with the symbolism of impermanence, there is also the constant tension in our inner selves which has inspired TRAC artists. Buddhism recognises impermanence as one of three marks of existence and understanding it is a key path to enlightenment.  Work explores how we deal with this unending struggle between acceptance and denial and how meditation and altered states of consciousness can change our perception and experience of self.