Join us for the opening of Shenshen Zheng’s Root and Fruit – Sharing of home garden nostalgia.
The Chinese proverb 一方水土养一方人 yīfāng shuǐtǔ yǎng yīfāng rén reflects the sentiment that people and place are intricately related; humans, and more than human, inhabitants are inflected by the soil and water that nourishes them.
Root & Fruit has grown from nostalgia for my former homeland. Of childhood memories in my grandpa’s vegetable garden and the produce and food that has cultivated my cultural identity. Since arriving in Australia, I started my own vegetable garden and grew familiar vegetables to feed my family and share with friends. Living on Kaurna Country I am reminded of where I grew up and how I am now nurtured in relationships with worms, slugs, insects, earth, sun, and rain as I discover, collect, learn and continue to grow.
Nexus Arts acknowledges the Kaurna people as the owners of the land where we live, learn, and work. We respect their culture and elders and acknowledge their sovereignty was never ceded. We recognise that visual arts, music and storytelling have been central to Aboriginal cultures for over 70,000 years. We work to support this lineage.
