This competition class was for an agricultural show so the meaning of the title could have been very specific to those attending. The competition draws designers from both rural and urban areas so the personal interpretation of the title could have depicted either an urban or farm landscape, however we were only allowed to use Australian native plant material in the design although it could be either dried or fresh.
You may have seen the fence post I have used here in other designs of mine. It is actually a real timber farm fencepost that has been woodturned at the top to form a small vase opening. The advantage of this container is that it still has the two holes originally used for the fencing wires which helps with incorporating it into a full design.
Here I wanted to show how plant material can gather at a fence post with the vagaries of the weather, sometimes dried material blown there and other times growing material that has taken a hold after seeds have been left by fires (a common way for Australian native floral to disperse seeds).
Rusted fencing wire is wrapped around some bark strips with kangaroo paw and Zanthorrhoea (grass tree) foliage and spent flower spike completing the design.
Judges comments: Whilst this design depicts what might occur at a single point “along the fenceline” it does not give the impression of a fence “line” in that we don’t see a repetition of the fence post or the plant material either in a line or diminishing into the horizon.
The design needs to be lifted above the bench to enhance the impact – in its current staging the bench becomes part of the design and does not add to the interpretation.