Pilar Mata Dupont, The Embrace, 2013. Single channel HD video with sound, 5:04 minutes, edition 3 of 3. Purchased for Boola Katitjin 2022. Image courtesy of the artist and Moore Contemporary.

I first saw The Embrace when Boola Katitjin opened; it had a profound effect on me. Pilar Mata Dupont’s work is an imagined reconciliation between North and South Korea, however it also calls to something universal, a need for deep connection and the embrace as a universal symbol of love and acceptance. To embrace and be embraced is to know that you exist; that you are seen, known and loved. Without having to know the specific context of the work, the viewer understands that prior to the embrace there was disconnection. The pain of this prior separation is clear in the work – the embrace brings tears.

We live in a world where narratives and messages of the ‘other’ as inherently different and separate to us are ubiquitous. We see the painful impact of this thinking playing out in our world today through violence, war, prejudice, subjugation and separation.

In my early twenties I worked with asylum seekers in immigration detention. The people behind the bars were funny, intelligent, loved music and were generous with the little they had. They brought me tea and biscuits when I visited and introduced me to the poetry of Rumi. It was harrowing to meet children who had grown up behind bars in Australia and asylum seekers whose only crime was to follow a deeply human impulse - to find peace and security - being called by numbers instead of their names. I witnessed the barbarity that we can allow when we refuse to see each other as equally worthy of respect and safety. We see examples of this so much in our world.

I have always had a strong belief that underneath exterior designated markers of ‘otherness’ - gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic background, religion, nationality - we are so much more alike than different and are deeply connected by our common humanity. When we take the time to connect with each other, to converse and listen, we are able to see ourselves in others more readily.

Visually, Dupont’s work is also breathtakingly beautiful and aesthetically captivating. The graceful and powerful feminine energy of the two women embracing in this work speaks to me. I am very drawn to beauty in the human and natural world. We sometimes forget that we are nature, but the creative energy clear to us in a grand eucalyptus is also present in us.

A loss of connection to ourselves as nature is at the heart of the path that has led us to treating nature as a resource to be plundered. This same narrative of ‘otherness’ has made us numb to our impact on those around us and ignorant to our deep connection and interdependence. This is a big part of the work of sustainability – to understand our interconnection as a strength which enables the flourishing of all life. In embracing ourselves as nature, we regain a deeper truth about our humanity.

About Siobhan McCarthy

Siobhan McCarthy (she/her) is a strategic, solutions-focused, big-picture thinker, working within the Office of the Pro Vice Chancellor, Sustainability to design and deliver Murdoch University's inaugural Sustainability Strategy. Siobhan is passionate about sustainability, equity, creating a university environment where everyone is supported to be their best and education and research can flourish. With a background in communications, organisational development and teaching, Siobhan values authenticity, collaborative leadership, courage and curiosity and loves to connect with others to learn and share insights.

Siobhan had a proud full circle moment in 2024, when one of her former Politics and Law students graduated from Murdoch with a Bachelor of Laws. She is proud to work at Murdoch University and support the essential work of educating the next generation.