‘Of Water, of Earth’ by Shaun Daniel Allen for Hermes

The collaboration centred around a journey to the Northern Territory with the artist granted special permission to work alongside the celebrated and award-winning artists Aunties Nanuk and Regina Wilson from The Durrmu Art Centre in Peppimentarti, southwest of Darwin.

The Hermès Sydney Trust windows and store takeover featured dyed and painted canvases by Shal, a rich rockscape too, laced with tiny water-filled rockpools encapsulating an array of Hermès Objects. Shal’s work - magical, intuitive, profoundly elemental - unfurled, taking on a life of its own and paying respect to the Gadigal Land on which Hermès Sydney Trust is built. The intention was for a spiritual unison and intersection between his artwork and the heritage architecture that lies at the heart of the store.

‘‘It’s been a major project, a bit terrifying to be honest, but I love the space and from a historical perspective what they have done with this building is amazing. The scope was exciting. Once I knew I was getting the window and could spread out, the idea came pretty quickly - of the landcsapes of Sydney, the colours, the rock formations and most of Country has been a source of inspiration. The rockscapes are reminiscent of what Sydney is built on, we are close to the water lapping against the rocks, making it’s path through it all,’’ says Shal.

‘‘I hope that when people walk past, they will be intrigued and want to come in and see more. For any mob to walk past and see something they can identify with in a space like Hermès makes me really proud.’’

Photo’s by Wesley Nel