OBSERVATORIUM

FLOAT is an idea about the role of Art in communities. It is a philosophy, an investigation, an adventure. A possible pathway to economic viability for artists in our region.

It is also a well built floating studio residence, anchored on Bung Yarnda. Lake Tyers. This manifestation of a group concept has brought me to explore our human domesticity.  Shelter, a means to cook our food and to dispose of our waste. 

The choices available in providing these fundamentals are extravagant; extraordinarily so in terms of human history.  The world is awash with domestic supplies that far, far outweigh our needs. Every human whim is on the market.  It’s a market driven less by actual need than by indulgence: less by necessity than by well honed consumer culture. Float has navigated the hazards of these markets and choices in a pared-back, minimalist style. We are attempting to deal with our waste likewise.  Waste minimisation as Art. 

At present our grey water flows through a very basic reed bed that is floating on a small pontoon attached FLOAT. It has been trialed and tested, showing that the water is improved by this simple means.  It is a lesson I have learned from the Lake itself.  By observing the effects of rainfall on the farmland adjacent to our mooring, it is obvious that the shoreline plants play a crucial role in filtering the water.  Therefore the plants chosen for the filtration reed bed are the species that already do that job there, onsite.  We are learning to read the systems around us.

It is immediately obvious to any resident onboard FLOAT that this is a more than human world.  This is shared habitat. As in the lesson of the plants, there is much to be gained by observing the other inhabitants and taking our cue from them. Insects, spiders, birds, fish, mammals; they are interlocked in a dance, orchestrated by the estuary.  We will learn to dance with them.

This is the Observatorium.