Karma Barnes, hailing from Tāmaki Makaurau, New Zealand, and currently residing on Bundjalung Country, Northern Rivers, New South Wales, Australia is a multifaceted artist. Her artistic repertoire spans site-specific installations, painting, and participatory practices, with a strong emphasis on community engagement. Over the past 15 years, Barnes has been deeply immersed in exploring pigments and soils, unearthing the intricate connections between humanity and the earth. Her art has traversed continents, captivating audiences in Australasia, Europe, Asia, and the USA, with over 15,000 individuals actively participating in her immersive installations.
At the heart of Barnes’s artistic endeavors lies a profound exploration of how creativity can serve as a conduit for communities to navigate periods of upheaval and transformation. Drawing inspiration from the cyclical rhythms of nature and the human experience, her work delves into themes of life, death, creation, and destruction. Through elemental forces and the transient nature of existence, Barnes probes into the profound ways in which internal and external encounters shape our collective narrative.
One of Barnes’s installations, titled “CO-Lapses,” is slated for exhibition at the Arsenale Nord, Venice, Italy, as part of the prestigious Arte Laguna Prize’s 18th edition. This captivating piece embodies the interconnectedness of natural cycles, the ephemeral essence of phenomena, and the subjective lens through which we perceive change. Informed by biomimicry, “CO-Lapses” mirrors the ingenious craftsmanship of mud-dauber wasps, which Barnes observed extracting pigments from her work to construct their nests.
Constructed from earth pigments and sand sourced from the ancient landscape of Bundjalung Country, “CO-Lapses” emerges as a testament to the ceaseless flux of existence. The installation’s suspended pods, gracefully releasing streams of finely ground pigments onto the floor, serve as a visual metaphor for the passage of time and the stratification of geological layers. Each pod, meticulously designed to pay homage to the industrious mud wasps, embodies a profound connection to the natural world—a testament to the interwoven fabric of life.
Barnes’s fascination with the mud wasps’ life cycle serves as a poignant reminder of the interconnectedness of all beings. Through “CO-Lapses,” she artfully captures the essence of intersubjectivity—the notion that reality is co-constructed by all participants in a relationship. For Barnes, the concept of society extends beyond human boundaries, encompassing a world co-created by humans and nonhumans alike.
In a world characterized by rapid change and uncertainty, Karma Barnes’s art serves as a beacon of introspection and interconnectedness. Through her evocative installations and participatory practices, she invites audiences to contemplate their place within the intricate web of existence—a testament to the enduring power of art to foster dialogue, empathy, and understanding in times of flux.
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