Fiona Hall and Mercantilism

Definitions of Mercantilism:


Mercantilism is an early modern European economic and political system in which wealth and power were determined by possession of gold and a favorable balance of trade with each other.
(http://cw.routledge.com/textbooks/9780415485395/glossary.asp)


Mercantilism is an economic system (Europe in 18th century) to increase a nation's wealth by government regulation of all of the nation's commercial interests.
(wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn)


Mercantilism is an economic theory, considered to be a form of economic nationalism, that holds that the prosperity of a nation is dependent upon its supply of capital,represented by bullion(gold, silver, and trade value) held by the state, which is best increased through a positive balance of trade with other nations (exports minus imports). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercantilism)


Mercantilism,is an economic theory promoting government regulation of a nation's economy, was designed to increase state power and wealth at the expense of rival nations. German historians first used the word mercantilism in the 1800s, but many of its goals date back to the early Renaissance.


In early Renaissance, between the 1500s and the 1700s many European states wanted to expand business at home, increase foreign trade, and export more goods than they imported. For this reason, they established new colonies around the world. They also developed, supported, and protected their own industries.


The Renaissance marked the first stage in the gradual use of mercantilist policies. Three factors influenced the growth of mercantilism: economic problems, increased trade competition, and military ambition. Officials in major cities established policies that would bring in cheap food supplies and raw materials. They also set up regional market monopolies* to favor their own merchants and crafts workers.

FIONA HALL

'Leaf Litter' (1999-2003)

'Tender' (2003-05)

"While money is the bottom line in our contemporary economy and overrides crucial environmental concerns, plants are often the raw material for generating income (and money, made from paper, is also produced from plants). Fiona Hall’s witty and elegant work captures this perfectly."


 Russel Storer, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, 2000


'Leaf Litter' (1999-2003) investigates the interrelationships between the natural world and the commercial world. The work consists of a number of individual elements made of bank notes from different countries, joined together to form panels. On the bank notes, Fiona Hall draws different types of leaves that represent a native plant from the country of origin. These plants have become endangered as a result of economic pressures to grow commercial crops.


In Creating her 'Leaf Litter' series, Fiona Hall uses about 183 banknotes of varying currency. She then has painted very lightly using gouache paint to create an x-ray image of a leaf from where the banknote is from. The leaves are transparent to allow the viewer to see the banknotes underneath and to get the idea that the two are inter-linked. When she uses multiple banknotes they are stuck together using paper tape on the back to continue the picture as a whole. What’s really interesting is when they are hung on the wall they are only attached at the top to allow the lower part to move and to increase the transparency of the piece.


'Tender' (2003-2005) is the artist's most recent work at exhibitions,the viewer is confronted with a large number of simulacra of birds' nests displayed in a specially designed glass vitrine reminiscent of 19th century museum display cases for ornithological specimens. 


Each bird's nest, it's shape and form is an exact replica of one belonging to a specific bird species, but on closer examination, one becomes aware that the materials used for these nests are not constructed of straw and twigs, but are woven out of shredded US one dollar bills, where the words "this note is legal tender" can be explained. So a system of classifying nests from a natural environment collides with a monetary code suggesting that globalisation and the Yankee dollar are the most destructive environmental forces in the world today. The bird nests are devoid of birds and of life and resemble museum exponents of extinct species, so that the whole work can be interpreted as being about loss and absence.


And Jut a little bit of Information about Herself...
Fiona Margaret Hall is one of Australia's leading contemporary artists. She first emerged in the 1970s as a photographer, but during the 1980s transitioned to using a diverse range of art forms. Her ever-growing repertoire includes sculpture, painting, installation, garden design and video.


Hall's choice of material, and the way she uses it, is critical to her art. It speaks to us because it engages with contemporary life in intriguing ways, created from an Australian perspective. Hall deliberately transforms ordinary everyday objects to address a range of contemporary issues such as globalization, consumerism, colonialism and natural history.Fiona Margaret Hall (b. 1953) is one of Australia's leading contemporary artists. She first emerged in the 1970s as a photographer, but during the 1980s transitioned to using a diverse range of art forms. Her ever-growing repertoire includes sculpture, painting, installation, garden design and video. The core theme throughout Hall's work is the relationship between nature and culture. Throughout her career Hall has also maintained a lifelong commitment to teaching and study as a means of furthering her art.


Resources:
http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/fionahall/
http://rebeccacobb-clark.blogspot.com/2009/03/fiona-hall-leaf-litter-materials.html
http://nga.gov.au/Federation/Detail.cfm?WorkID=26201
http://www.artreview.com.au/art/profiles/artists/buzz-review-fiona-hall.aspx
http://www.novelguide.com/a/discover/rens_03/rens_03_00300.html