Finalist in the Waterhouse Natural Science Prize

I am excited to announce that my work Exquisite Corpse 10 (Eastern Curlew, Plains Wanderer and Star Finch) has been selected as a finalist for the Waterhouse Natural Science Prize at the South Australian Museum.  The exhibition of works will be on display at the South Australian Museum from the 10th April to the 19th July 2026. 

The work is comprised of three endangered and vulnerable birds of Australia and the title Exquisite Corpse refers to both the Surrealist game and to the exquisite nature of the specimens I have drawn in preparation for making these images at the Queensland Museum.  I use a historical style of scientific illustration to depict the imagined bird, which references the period of discovery marking the beginning of the industrial age which has in our own time bought about the conditions for climate change we are currently experiencing.  The bringing together of the three birds also creates a new bird which refers to the ideas of cloning and also makes somewhat a “believable bird”. Importantly unless you read the information the image could lead you to believe it was an actual bird itself drawing attention to how information can be altered to give an impression of something that may not be true, something we are having to navigate in the time of artificial intelligence.

To see more on the Exquisite Corpse series go to the exhibitions tab in the drop down menu and select Exquisite Corpse. 
Photography by Louis Lim.