Caitlin Fargher Renewable

What does it take to power our lives – and what gets left behind?

In Renewable, Caitlin Fargher brings together clay and minerals sourced from the dammed rivers of lutruwita/Tasmania with recycled metal, salvaged materials and low-cost technologies powered by wind, water and sun.

Wobbly powerlines are cast from melted pewter. Fragile wind turbines emerge from fishbones and salvaged myrtle. Electric insulators warp and buckle, while water turbines are formed from recycled clay and glazed with ash from trees found at dam sites.

At the heart of the exhibition is a tension: between our growing demand for energy and the landscapes, materials and resources used to produce it.

It’s also personal. Fargher is the granddaughter of Frank Kinstler, a Hydro Electric Commission (HEC) dam engineer, and Renewable draws on this family history to consider both what has been altered and what has been passed down – practical knowledge, resourcefulness and a drive to make.

Through objects that are inventive, imperfect and deliberately handmade, Renewable asks what a different electrical future might look like – and whether simply changing how we produce energy is enough if we don’t also change how much we consume.

Fabrication assistance: Ollie McKay, Ben Paul

Sound design: Matthew Fargher

With thanks to Poatina Arts (a significant site in Tasmania’s Hydroelectric history), initial sculptures made during Residency in November 2024