Barbie Kjar: Lion Tides: Stories of the Sea and Salt

Barbie Kjar’s

Lion Tides: Stories of the Sea and Salt

Maritime Museum of Tasmania, Hobart

22 April - 27 August 2023

‘Lion tides occur when the earth, moon and sun are aligned at perigee and perihelion. It is a tide just after a new or full moon, when there is greatest difference between high or low tides, commonly known as big tides.  

This exhibition focuses on forms of navigation, as a swimmer and as a sailor.

As an ocean swimmer I am aware of an underworld, a world under the water, a world which is deep, unknown, at times treacherous but also calm and clear. It is abstracted with hues of green, debris, seaweed, creatures, jellyfish, fish, currents, light, dense, choppy, wild, transformative. Each time I came back to land I feel altered, in awe, and buffeted from a myriad of thoughts.

I have delved into a magic zone.

I have lived on the island of Tasmania most of my life, almost always next to the sea and have sea faring heritage in my ancestors. My artistic concerns are the rituals of human behaviour, connection to the natural world, identity, mythology and science, historical research and narratives. I am particularly interested in the impact of climate change, stories of the sea, navigation and the deep dark sea itself.

Lion Tides is a reflection of my preoccupation with the sea.’ – Barbie Kjar, 2023.