Canopy

There is one main road that circles the perimeter of the largest island of Fiji, Viti Levu. I have often travelled along Queens Rd between Nadi and Suva and marveled at the density of the Fijian jungle and the majesty of the enormous trees that create canopies on either side of the road. When I travel this Road in Fiji I wonder if my father saw the same trees and if these trees saw my father. In making this video work, I am reminded of the Rotuman scholar and filmmaker Vilsoni Hereniko’s film titled The Land Has Eyes. When I travel Queens Rd, I feel the ancestors watching. This canopy of trees hangs over the road that leads to Fiji’s international airport – landscapes that hold memories of transitory movement and migration. This work was first exhibited as part of the exhibition WAWA: Art in the Contemporary Pacific, curated by Cheng-yi Chien and Mei-Chen Tseng at the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts in Taiwan until 20 February 2018.