Eremos

Sometimes as we contemplate a work of art it’s easy to forget that it’s not only art but work. Our cover image is a photograph of a sculpture by Meliesa Judge, and the subject is Mary Ward, the founder of the Loreto Order. In the article which opens this issue, Peter Willis discusses with Meliesa the process of sculpting in bronze—the research, the consultation, the selection of a life model, the agony of undoing when something’s not quite right and the joy of the work completed to satisfaction. The quest for beauty—which artists practise and the rest of us dream about—is closely aligned to the spiritual quest.

This is also true, of course, with the other arts, as the poets in this issue would tell you. There are more poems this time than usual. Perhaps it’s personal; I have been reading more poetry lately and I’m moved by the economy of expression, the power of word choice and arrangement and the reverberating effect of a fine poem. Thank you to Anne Elvey, Rod Pattenden and Judith Beveridge, the poets of this issue.

Anna Saminsky, in the second article, asks a question well-known to many Eremos readers as she searches for a church which will make her feel alive. Varga Hosseini follows, with a review of the art of Gordon Bennett. This will repay close attention, as Gordon Bennett is an Indigenous artist who frequently comments on the role played by Christian missionaries in the history of his people. It is powerful stuff.

John Cameron opens a window onto a view of his life on Bruny Island, led by ‘heron’ which (who) serves as a kind of totem for him and his wife as they embrace a new lifetstyle. To follow this, we have reprinted Rob O’Brien’s image from the cover of Eremos no. 69, November 1999. Rob originally created ‘Creek centre’ to accompany an article by Veronica Brady, in which she speaks of Judith Wright’s poem, At Cooloola: ‘It begins with the image of a blue crane [another name for the white heron] at twilight—fishing as the cranes have done here for centuries.’ The poet is uneasy, uncertain of her place, ‘…aware of the ways her ancestors forced their way into the country, dispossessing its Aboriginal inhabitants.’

In the article which follows, Linda Turton gives an amusing and serious account of her Eremos group meeting to share favourite poems. Linda’s own choice of poem echoes the feeling—expressed in At Cooloola—of not belonging, as she contemplates how the land was taken from the Indigenous peoples.

Jean Jones and Rob Brennan conclude the issue, Jean with an account of the seeming dichotomy between mind and heart when it comes to faith, and Rob with a vignette revealing a new understanding gained on his recent Outback travels.

As Rob goes roaming, so this issue has wandered all over Australia, with contributors coming from South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and Queensland. Our previous editor is a Western Australian, and we have a good number of members there and in the ACT and NT, so although it may seem that activities (all organised by volunteers) centre around New South Wales, Eremos is a truly Australia-wide organisation. Email enquiries@eremos.org.au if you would like to start up a group, or hold an event or activity. Eremos can put you in touch with other members in your state.

Jacquie Pryor