Thirroul sculptor Sally Kidall is exhibiting a surreal work – an underground security bunker concept inspired by doomsday prepping research – at 2022's Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi.

With a 'For Sale' sign, QR code and a portal to a luxurious six-bedroom home, 'architecturally designed with the latest subterranean survival technologies', Sally's Bunker Down: Survival of the Fittest is one of more than 100 works on show along the 2km Bondi to Tamarama coastal walk.

“The location of the exhibition is fantastic, there are so many great locations to create site-responsive works,” Sally said.

“Sculpture by the Sea has its challenges [as] the site's exposed position is prone to strong southerly winds and is difficult to access for install, but we have a wonderful community of sculptors that meet up during the exhibition.”

Bondi's Sculpture by the Sea is back after a three-year pause, opening on October 21 and on until November 7. It's Sally's ninth time taking part in the exhibition; she was last selected for Cottesloe’s Sculpture by the Sea in 2020. 

While currently visiting family in her native England, Sally kindly answered our questions about what inspires her work and the story behind Bunker Down: Survival of the Fittest.

Can you describe your younger years growing up in the UK, and when and why you decided to make the move to Australia?

I grew up on the outskirts of South London in a property that backed onto the North Downs. Both my parents were socially minded architects and had been involved in the post-war rebuild, I lived and breathed building sites as a child. Make do & mend was their ethos; our veggies came from the garden, clothes were handmade, and breakages repaired. I loved hanging out with Dad, helping him make and repair things. I always had some construction project going on in my bedroom and Mum encouraged my sister and I in drawing, painting and ceramics.

Becoming a sculptor was my mission [on] leaving school and I studied at Norwich School of Art. During my degree, land artist Richard Long visited college and presented his slideshow: ‘Art Made by Walking in Landscapes’. His work had a profound impact on my approach to making sculptures as a young student and opened my eyes to the endless possibilities of material options and exhibiting platforms.

Moving to London post-college, I continued making my art practice in my new derelict Deptford studio where I met some influential artists. They introduced me to the powers of art-activism, and we collaborated in small direct-action performance-art protests in response to the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and the anti-apartheid movement during the 1980s.

In 1986 I left the UK in search of adventure, travelling to New Zealand, cycling, hitchhiking, and walking up endless mountains, and continued into Australia, but slowed down on the hitchhiking as the adventures became too hairy at times! I worked in community arts in Sydney and ended up settling there. Later I studied Interior Architecture and worked in theme park design and museum/exhibition design while maintaining my art practice.

Now [I work] full-time as an environmental installation artist. Having married a keen surfer, the proximity of Thirroul to the bush and Sydney seemed a perfect location to bring up our kids during their teenage years, [and] we moved here in 2008.

As a creator of site-responsive and site-specific installations, can you describe your art form and what is involved?

My art installations are usually conceived for and in response to a particular site or place. I rarely exhibit within the limitations of a gallery situation and usually out in natural or urban environments or within interesting buildings.

I spend time in the site observing and documenting the place, researching its history, and getting a feel for the site before the final concept comes together. Sometimes this is done from a distance in the case of international projects where I use photos, Google maps, and reference materials to feed my ideas, often making adjustments on arrival at site.

I use a variety of materials combined with timber or steel construction, using large quantities of fabrics, with natural materials and growing or dying elements. Video projection and sound contribute to many works and [I] often integrate virtual elements with linked to project websites. I travel extensively with my work and often collaborate with other artists.

What is the inspiration and creative process behind your latest work, Bunker Down: Survival of the Fittest?

Bunker Down: Survival of the Fittest was inspired by an [ABC] Radio National interview with the internationally acclaimed urban explorer and geographer Dr Bradley Garrett. One of his books documenting his subterranean London adventures initially caught my attention.

During the interview he discussed his research into the growing 'Prepper' communities around the world who are preparing for an imminent apocalypse by building their underground bunkers and filling them with provisions. He later published his book, Bunker, Building for the End of Time, in August 2020.

I’ve always been intrigued by underground places and spaces and Bradley's research triggered my ideas following the summer of bushfires in 2019-20 and the beginning of the Covid pandemic. My project’s site, located on the Bondi to Tamarama coastal track, proved perfect for my subterranean bunker concept … the storm-water towers offered obvious locations to create a bunker access door to the virtual lift and emergency exits.

I connected with Bradley and commissioned him to write an essay for my project website, [and] he was very enthusiastic about my project and wrote a press release for the website about my fictitious property company.

I designed and drafted all the drawings for my luxurious subterranean property – complete with hydroponic gardens, pool, garden, water recycling, etc. – and created Photoshop images for some of the rooms and a video to support the idea – later loading them to the website of my fictitious subterranean property company, Bunker Down.

My FOR SALE sign was manufactured by a regular real estate signage company and has proved very convincing in the exhibition. I made the bunker doors using plywood, etc., complete with padlocks and hinges, finishing it with a rust-effect paint, finally sewing a tight transparent fabric jacket to each tower to highlight the project.

Find out more about Sally's projects here

Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi runs until November 7