Cressida Campbell

'The main thing is that you don't want to keep on repeating yourself. You really do want to try and keep exploring.'

—Cressida Campbell

Campbell has often lived near the ocean. After growing up in the Sydney suburb of Greenwich on Cammeraygal Country, where industry overlaps with bushland, she has found Sydney Harbour a recurring source of inspiration. Her approach acknowledges the beauty found on and around the waterfront.

Influenced by early engravings of the British penal colony at Port Jackson, Campbell’s triptychs offer panoramic view of familiar landmarks around Warrang on Gadigal Country: from Jørn Utzon’s Opera House to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, or the quieter vista from nearby Observatory Hill that surveys the terrace rooftops of The Rocks and the working harbour beyond.

Campbell’s images of water also reflect its powerful capacity for connection and solace, whether observed in a tranquil pool in Siem Riep, Cambodia, or the long view across Mulubinba/Newcastle on Awabakal and Worimi Country.

Can you describe the composition of Through the windscreen? What dominates the foreground compared to the background?

Where has Cressida Campbell positioned the viewer?

Why do you think Cressida Campbell has positioned the view inside the car with the window framing the view?

If you were sitting in the car looking out at a waterscape, the river, harbour or ocean, does it feel different looking out the car window compared to walking through that landscape? Describe the difference.

Cressida view consists of natural and human constructed elements within the landscape. Can list some of them?

Think about the place you live. What natural elements are there and what can you see this is human constructed? Is one of these more dominant than the other?

What framing devices can you find in your everyday life? Artists often use shapes and lines of building, fences, trees or windows to ‘frame’ a focal point.

Make a series of photographs using creative framing and thoughtful composition to draw attention to aspects of your surroundings that include the natural world as well as the human construction.

Has the exploration of your surroundings made you see or consider the world around you differently or make you notice something new?