Sheyne Tuffery - The Floating World

I see Wellington’s landscape as a layered archive of stratigraphic memory—where dreams, memories, and mythologies settle like sediment beneath the surface, woven into the subconscious of the land. These stories live beyond the surface, echoing quietly inside me, folding time and narrative into a fragile, floating realm.

I find myself reflecting on how this land has been shaped and reshaped over millions of years—its valleys carved by ancient forces, its contours rewritten by time and tide. Yet here we are, a brief, almost insignificant dash in its long story. Amidst the quiet presence embedded in the earth, I wonder: how can we, fleeting as we are, learn to listen and adapt? What wisdom does the land hold about resilience, renewal, and navigating change that stretches far beyond our own brief moment?

The Floating World, mixed media on stretched canvas, 80 x 80 cm