Ignite Studios Artist Residency  |  July - August 2022

Miriam Salomon was born and raised in Montevideo, Uruguay and has lived in unceded Bundjalong Country for nearly three decades. Her emerging practice spans immersive installation, performance, video, sculpture and assemblage. She holds a Bachelor of Visual Arts (Hons) from Southern Cross University and has exhibited widely in the Northern Rivers and, a few times, abroad.

I attended Ignite Studios opening celebrations in 2018 and, having been on residencies in faraway places myself, I imagined an artist coming from a noisy city or a very cold village and making the most of being based in this beautiful repurposed building. Exploring the quiet town, walking or riding a bicycle by the river and returning to work, heat up some soup, read, rest… I couldn’t have imagined that that person would be me.

When my art studio in Lismore was lost to the floods, my house in the North of Byron Shire became a chaotic storage and processing station for the (very muddy) studio contents that could be salvaged. I had a vague idea that I would eventually need to find an empty, dedicated space to complete the work for my scheduled installation at NRCG. The Gallery and Studios Team anticipated that need and, like other flood affected artists before me, I was offered the use of the Artist in Residence spaces at Ignite for the five weeks leading up to my exhibition.

Each day in the studio was joyful, productive and also instrumental in my personal flood recovery process. I felt welcomed and at home and the work came together in a very supportive environment. Being next to the Gallery was a bonus, helping me imagine the work in place, and making ‘install day’ much lighter than it would have otherwise been. I’m grateful, and now very fond of Ballina and its old Fire Station.

- Miriam Salomon, 2022