Desert Pearls
single channel – mp4
An ephemeral public artwork
In recognition of significant women, past and present, of Broken Hill
Cynthia Schwertsik in collaboration with Susan Thomas and the Willyama High School Students
Videography and photography by Alexandra Rosenblum
The achievements of sombre men find their way into public spaces, honoured in monuments, statues, and plaques, whilst women usually go unrecognised for their contributions to socio-political progress. Desert Pearls is a documented public intervention, performed and produced in the early evening of November 14th, 2020. The video is the culmination of discussions between women of multiple generations, conversations of frustration and hope. The video chronicles colourful female characters – drawn from those that inspired the project –engaging playfully with the unmoving bronze busts of the Syndicate of Seven, the original members of the Broken Hill Mining Company formed in 1883. The camera follows a series of accumulative and intuitive interventions on the site outside the Broken Hill City Council building.
Desert Pearls bei cynthiaschwertzik.com
