‘Sydney is a city that’s not just shaped by water – it’s renowned for it'
Scott Davies, Senior Associate, Hassell Architects (2020)
While Sydney is often defined by its harbour, coastal inlets, and the great rivers that cut through the city, Waterscape turns its attention to the quieter waterways the subtle, often unseen currents that have sustained communities for thousands of years. Long overlooked through periods of colonial extraction, industrial waste, and urban expansion, these waterways are now being restored and re‑valued in a time shaped by climate change, environmental awareness, and renewed respect for natural systems.
‘Waterscape’ is inspired by the meandering streams, creeks and the ephemeral tributaries which form a fertile waterscape across the vast Cumberland Plain of Western Sydney. Waterscape translates this hidden hydrology into a dynamic field of light. Using colour‑changing LMX technology mounted on stainless steel architectural mesh, the artwork evokes the shifting rhythms of water across the landscape. Light becomes movement; movement becomes memory. The work invites viewers to pause, to follow the slow drift of illumination, and to imagine the water that once moved. and still moves, beneath their feet
Artist: Ruth McDermott and Ben Baxter
Date: 2024
Medium: LED light, metal mesh, cord and light control.
Dimensions: 65m x 12m.
Art Commission: aMBUSH Gallery for Blacktown’s City Art Walk.
Image credit: Enzo Amato
