“At daybreak the water’s edge would draw the line Arthur Boyd drew between two worlds”
– Darleen Bungey, Arthur Boyd: A Life

Fata Morgana is inspired by the history of Bundanon, and its close relationship with art, architecture and the natural landscape. Just as Arthur Boyd’s paintings carry a sense of mysticism and fantasy, Fata Morgana is designed and drawn around the idea of the mirage. A palimpsest of times, landscapes and deconstructed architectural elements make up this artwork, which reads as a trompe l’oeil that opens up the wall of Gallery One to this fantasy landscape. KTA’s Bundanon Museum becomes the fata morgana in the distance, as a whirlwind of elements on the site and the site’s history sits in the foreground–a door from Bundanon Homestead, a scene of First Nations cultural burning, a concrete monument from the Boyd Education Centre, the Singleman’s Hut. These are alternated with elements from fantasy–water that is both the Shoalhaven river and a representation of possible future flooding, as well as the surreal creatures come to life straight from the canvases of Arthur Boyd.

Yiling Shen and Yuchen Gao are two young designers who recently completed their Master of Architecture at RMIT University. Shen has worked on the editorial team for ArchDaily, as well as interning with the Office of the Victorian Government Architect. She has been involved in many civic architecture projects, engaging with community consultation and design workshops. Gao is a three times recipient of the Design Excellence Award at RMIT, as well as being shortlisted for the Victorian Premier’s Design Award. They have been involved in the Tallin Biennale and worked in the industry on many education and civic projects.
For Melbourne Design Week 2022, Shen and Gao created and delivered the project F*** Marry Kill (Melbourne Buildings Edition), which collected data through a ‘dating app’ for people to swipe left or right to buildings in the Melbourne CBD. The project was featured in TimeOut, Broadsheet and Architect Victoria, as well as being a finalist in the Fishermans Bend Innovation Challenge.