Ferals is an evolving body of sculptural work that addresses the problem of feral animals introduced to Australia by early European settlers. Bursting from vessels that mimic 18th and 19th century English ceramics are two of Australia’s most destructive feral species – cats and rabbits.

The ceramic forms symbolise domesticity, settlement, and the migration of an entire culture: the English brought with them not only their customs and household objects, but also the animals woven into their everyday lives. Cats, familiar inhabitants of English homes and kitchens, travelled alongside countless other possessions needed to establish a new life in an unfamiliar land. Rabbits, credited to Thomas Austin’s 1859 introduction, were brought to satisfy an English tradition of hunting.

Both species have had a profound impact on the Australian ecosystem – an act of ignorance that evolved into an ecological catastrophe. The work reflects on the enduring environmental consequences of human interference with nature, and on the fragile ecological balance so easily disrupted.

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