Overview

Walgalu/Wiradjuri artist Aidan Hartshorn explores the ongoing colonial disruptions to Walgalu connections with the land. Using industrial glass and elements, the exhibition reflects his journey of crafting cultural objects while examining the degradation of his ancestral landscape.

Raised in Tumut, where the headwaters of the Murrumbidgee River and Tumut River converge, Aidan Hartshorn's family was deeply rooted in their culture, though their connection to it became increasingly restricted with the development of the Snowy Hydro Scheme in the 1960s.

This exhibition explores the ongoing colonial processes that disrupt Walgalu connections to the land. Hartshorn utilises materials such as glass, concrete, steel rebar, and water—each linked to the construction of the hydro system. Building on a mentorship that has allowed him to craft cultural objects, Hartshorn employs glass symbolically pierced and severed by fluorescent tubes to investigate themes of disconnection, destruction, and degradation inflicted by industrial entities like Snowy Hydro.

This exhibition expands upon Hartshorn's highly successful work "These Violent Delights" which was featured in the My Country exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria.

See the Canberra Glassworks website for the full 2025 program and aligned events as such Gallery Floor Talk.

Canberra Glassworks 2025 exhibition program is supported by artsACT and Creative Australia.