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About the artwork
Listen to the artist statement for Raging Ravo Fire 2024
Rageing Ravo Fires (2024) draws on the devastating bushfires that swept through Ravenswood—known locally as Ravo—a low socio-economic community in Launceston, Tasmania. In 2024, arson-fuelled flames tore through the suburb, illuminating the night with both destruction and unsettling beauty.
This watercolour interpretation of the fires becomes a metaphor for my lived experience of profound disability. The deep shadows of the land and sky speak to society’s persistent negative perceptions of degenerative disability—its tendency to cast those of us who live it into darkness, invisibility, and misunderstanding. At the centre of the painting burns an intense, turbulent heart of fire. This inferno represents the emotional landscape shaped by dehumanisation, devaluing, and feelings of unworthiness.
Yet fire is never only destructive. Within its heat lies the possibility of warmth, transformation, and renewal. Amid the chaos, the flames also hold space for healing—reminding us that from devastation can emerge resilience, clarity, and regeneration.
About the artist - Victoria Wardlaw
I’m a professional woman living with a degenerative neuromuscular condition. I am an amateur artist exploring watercolour which allows me to play within the range of physical limitation.