As its name suggests, the Overwintering Project is a project rather than an exhibition. It is designed to be organic and long-term in nature to allow participation by any group in any venue and for any audience, provided that the major aims of the Project is respected. Each exhibition of the Overwintering Project will be different, depending on the artists involved, the venue, and the audience's or community's needs.
The Project’s primary aim is to bring visibility to Australia’s most endangered group of birds, our migratory shorebirds, and their habitat. Australia has 36 species of migratory shorebirds that breed above the Arctic Circle in Siberia and Alaska, migrating south to spend the major part of their migratory cycle (October – May) on the shores of Australia and New Zealand. The route they fly annually between their two homes is called the East Asian-Australasian Flyway*, and their journeys link 23 countries from New Zealand to Russia along the coast of Asia through which they fly, stop to rest and refuel, and breed. They travel this 25,000 circuit every year of their adult lives.
Largely due to their dependence on habitat in every one of the 23 Flyway countries – many of which number among the fastest-growing economies on the planet – migratory shorebirds are the fastest declining group of birds in Australia. As we share their home for the majority of the year, we have a particular responsibility in Australia and New Zealand to preserve their critical overwintering habitat. The Overwintering Project aims to raise awareness of migratory shorebirds – their existence and their needs – to help us do our part to preserve these extraordinary creatures.
This project is endorsed by BirdLife Australia and by the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership. It is instigated and co-ordinated by Melbourne-based artist, Kate Gorringe-Smith.
The Project’s primary aim is to bring visibility to Australia’s most endangered group of birds, our migratory shorebirds, and their habitat. Australia has 36 species of migratory shorebirds that breed above the Arctic Circle in Siberia and Alaska, migrating south to spend the major part of their migratory cycle (October – May) on the shores of Australia and New Zealand. The route they fly annually between their two homes is called the East Asian-Australasian Flyway*, and their journeys link 23 countries from New Zealand to Russia along the coast of Asia through which they fly, stop to rest and refuel, and breed. They travel this 25,000 circuit every year of their adult lives.
Largely due to their dependence on habitat in every one of the 23 Flyway countries – many of which number among the fastest-growing economies on the planet – migratory shorebirds are the fastest declining group of birds in Australia. As we share their home for the majority of the year, we have a particular responsibility in Australia and New Zealand to preserve their critical overwintering habitat. The Overwintering Project aims to raise awareness of migratory shorebirds – their existence and their needs – to help us do our part to preserve these extraordinary creatures.
This project is endorsed by BirdLife Australia and by the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership. It is instigated and co-ordinated by Melbourne-based artist, Kate Gorringe-Smith.