Matthew Harris, Big Love, 2021, possum skin, synthetic fur, wax-coated polyester thread, (other materials), 125.00 x 90.00 x 50.00 cm, TCG23568
(photo: Tom Ross) collection: National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne

Big love, 2021, is a soft sculpture Harris created in collaboration with his mother, Glenice Harris. Constructed from a combination of possum pelts and pink synthetic fur, the work is described by Harris as ‘a gesture of love to mob’. Sourced from Aotearoa / New Zealand, the possum pelts reflect the artist’s recent interest in the tradition of possum-skin cloaks, which hold particular historical and cultural significance to First Peoples in South East Australia. (‘Possum’ is also a nickname given to Harris by his family.) Originally exhibited as part of Harris’s exhibition Goo (2021) at Futures Gallery, Melbourne, Big love is now in the National Gallery of Victoria’s permanent collection.