A childhood memory of running through a clothesline full of freshly washed sheets was the inspiration for artist Stephanie Quirk’s entry into this year’s Sculpture in the Garden. The artist, educator and mother of two will be featured in the inaugural Ephemeral Prize, with finalists chosen for how their work responds to the Wollongong Botanic Garden site. 

After completing a Masters of Fine Art 20 years ago, Stephanie said it took the birth of her children to return to creating art.

“Since having kids, I’ve really come back into my practice. Inspired by, I suppose, the way children see and experience the world. And that availability of joy and wonder and play and curiosity,” she said. 

“My work is trying to explore ‘what is this experience of life’ and making immersive works that really elicit that feeling of joy and wonder and play.” 

Her entry into the exhibition is an ephemeral installation consisting of a 13-metre bamboo pavilion and reclaimed, vividly coloured fabrics. 

“I had this really vivid memory when I was kid and I’m sure you’ve had it too … when you’re walking or running through the clothesline of the the fresh sheets being washed and there’s that smell of the clean sheets and the sunshine coming through and it’s like a cubby house,” she explained.

“It’s like a scaled up version of that but the colours are very vivid and it really invites people to come in and make their own play experience.”

But more than that, the memory, which Stephanie believes crosses cultures and generations, was borne from a question she asked herself.

“I’ve always felt like an outsider in some ways so I was like, 'Okay where do I belong?' And then I thought about my memories and I thought I belong into my memories; there’s a really strong sense of ‘yes, they are mine’.” 

After the show, the artwork will “just become another heap of material again”, Stephanie said. “It’s funny but actually the artwork won’t belong in that place either so it’s fine because I’m like, I don’t belong but also the artwork doesn’t belong, so it’s kind of this interesting paradox.”

There’s something special about experiencing art in the Wollongong Botanic Garden. The garden – which hosts Sculpture in the Garden every two years – is well loved and the well-known benefits of being out in nature are highlighted in its ‘Go slow for a Mo’ nature wellness trail.

For Stephanie, it’s particularly exciting to see how her work will interact with not only the visitors but the environment itself. 

“I see with materials like the sheets, they really react to people. So people move through it, they touch them, they pull them up, they twirl and then you’ve got this really nice interaction with the wind …

"And seeing how the fabric moves with the wind I have this sense of collaborating with nature.” 

Sculpture in the Garden will be held from 1-30 April at the Wollongong Botanic Garden. Entry is free