David McBurney - A mountain is once again a mountain

Wednesday 2 - Saturday 19 August 2023

Click here for artwork by David McBurney

‘In the beginning, mountains are mountains and waters are waters; then, mountains are no longer mountains and waters are no longer waters; finally, mountains are once again mountains and waters once again waters.’

The title of this exhibition references a Zen teaching. A lesson which describes a search for the present moment and arriving at a point of view which has, perhaps, always been here. This particular teaching does have provenance, or a point of origin, meaning it can be attributed to a particular Zen scholar and teacher. However, in the world of contemporary culture, if I search today for mountains are once again mountains, I may equally arrive in the philosophy of Bruce Lee, Alan Watts or Toyota. More than ever, it seems that mindfulness of the present is something that requires my attention.

(opening paragraphs of exhibition catalogue)