Skip to main content

From Little Things

(Australian, 1964–2018)
2002
Medium/TechniqueAustralian red cedar
DimensionsOverall: 30.5 x 73.7 x 30.5 cm (12 x 29 x 12 in.)
Credit LineGift of Anita and Ronald Wornick
Accession number2011.1663
On View
Not on view
ClassificationsSculpture
Description
From Little Things was a stepping stone to Matthew Harding’s Fire Seeds, a sculptural series made in response to the 2003 Canberra bushfires in Australia. Made from Australian red cedar wood in the shape of a seed, the sculpture alludes to the humble origins of that tree, which can reach a height of nearly 200 feet. The wood was almost harvested to extinction in the 19th century, a fact that becomes more poignant when considering the destruction of bushfires today and the effects of the climate crisis. Harding’s sculpture evokes both the astonishing, timeless beauty of nature and its incredible fragility.
Provenance2011, gift of Ron and Anita Wornick to the MFA. (Accession Date: September 21, 2011)
CopyrightReproduced with permission.
Matthew Hill
2004
Bowl
Mike Darlow
1987
Hayley Smith
2000
Wendy Ramshaw
1980–89
Opal pin
Lilly Fitzgerald
about 1985
Group shot: 2006.366, 2006.367
Louis Mueller
1991
Group shot: 2006.366, 2006.367
Louis Mueller
1991
Mitch Ryerson
c. 1999
Bockscar
Matthew Day Jackson
2010
Potlach figure
about 1840