For our original piece in the 2020 Lake Hayes Community Lumify project, time was of the essence for our creation as the idea was born only days before Lumify. We wanted to create something from materials that we could source naturally. But we also needed a structure that would be strong enough to hold itself in the shape of a hand. We sourced mesh wire from a community member and Weeping Willow (Salix Babylonica) and Dogwood (Cornus Sericea) from our surrounding environment.

Both these natural sources were pliable for us to work with and their colourings were going to look amazing when lit up. We wanted to use these elements fresh to keep the vivid colours for our project. Willow weavers often harvest the branches during the autumn and leave to dry over a period of time before soaking them to utilise in their art. However, doing this loses the brightness of the golden colour that we needed for illumination of our light sculpture. The willow was yellow and we weaved this around the structural mesh frame that we had shaped into a giant hand.

The dogwood was red and therefore a striking element to use for weaving into the shape of a heart. We fashioned the mesh into a giant hand with the palm up and fingers curved upwards as if in a holding position. Next, we needed to strip all the willow of any leaves that hadn’t finished falling during the autumn. This we then weaved around the fingers. The palm we used thicker willow amongst dogwood branches to represent the veins.

With the heart, we weaved and intertwined the dogwood together and this was suspended above the hand by using 5 light pillars. Taking this a step further into Luma 2021, we have had The Metal Farm create a more stable hand sculpture welded onto a large metal plinth that we will be able to submerge into the pond in Queenstown Gardens.

Timing is everything for the gathering of our willow and dogwood. We must wait for the long slender weeping willow branches that reach the ground, to turn the right shade of yellow before we can harvest. The new branches begin as green growth and as the season changes their appearance transforms into beautiful golden hues. The dogwood in the autumn loses its leaves and we are also left with the vibrant red twigs. Because we are using natural elements that are seasonal we have a small window to create this piece.

We are looking forward to sharing our ‘Heartfelt’ sculpture to the wider community, in recognising the challenging times that have been faced and emphasising the importance of togetherness.

Debbie Townsend is supported by the LUMA Emerging Artist Programme.