Harriet Schwarzrock

‘The heart is often regarded as our emotional centre. Working with this form allows me to contemplate many aspects of being.’

Harriet Schwarzrock’s new work explores notions of emotional processes and their physical manifestations. ‘From the subtle yet essential electricity within our bodies, I am fascinated by this interplay between the invisible and the visible, between our extraordinary similarities and differences.’

In spaces between movement and stillness, the artist has embraced science and experimentation to create visual wonders: glass, inert gases, and electricity combine into an array of organic forms, producing a captivating field of colour and movement. ‘Sometimes they have a warm glow, much like an aurora contained in a bottle; in others there are lightning-like lines meandering around the form. Although the gases are invisible, when excited by electricity they reveal subtle effects and differences.’

The creation draws reflections on the role of the human heart as our central, exquisitely responsive ‘engine’. When we’re relaxed, the heart beats at a slow and steady rhythm; when excitement takes hold – for example, in the first throes of true love – the cadence might crank with the beat of a wilful, wild machine. Luminous alone, the myriad tones and permutations of spaces between movement and stillness also echo the boundless forms of love in our autumn-winter exhibition, Australian Love Stories.