Debbie Symons’ recent works present intimate portraits of native species drawn from the collection of Melbourne Museum. The paintings adopt visual techniques reminiscent of early colonial natural history illustration, a mode of representation associated with European expansion, foregrounding the distinct characteristics of each subject.

 

Rather than situating these species within an idealised landscape, the works reveal them as taxidermied specimens. Collection tags, labels, and polystyrene supports are retained within the pictorial space, disrupting the illusion of the natural and drawing attention to systems of classification, preservation, and display.

In contrast to the richly detailed settings often found in the works of 18th- and 19th-century natural history illustrators such as John Gould, Edward Lear, George Kearsley Shaw, and Helena Forde, these paintings are stripped back, presenting still and silent portraits that emphasise absence as much as presence.

 

Many of the species once meticulously documented during the colonial period are now listed as critically endangered. These works invite reflection on the entangled histories of colonialism, scientific observation, and the contemporary extinction crisis.

A selection of these paintings is exhibited at The Archive, the Wonthaggi Union Community Arts Centre, Light Box Lane Gallery. The exhibition reflects on the artist’s childhood experiences growing up in the ‘wilds’ of The Cape, on the unceeded lands of the Bunurong people. Each work recalls encounters with native wildlife, while meditating on the increasing silence of these environments.

 

Some of the depicted species were once local to the Cape. These paintings act as both observation and memorial, echoing the conventions of colonial representation while deliberately excluding surrounding flora. The taxidermied mounts remain visible, reinforcing the tension between representation, loss, and preservation.