Embrace

Embrace, laser-cut steel, 2016

ARTIST: Braham Stevens

This public art linking project was created to celebrate the 20 year anniversary of the JCU Cairns campus and the collaborative relationship between JCU and Cairns Regional Council. To express this collaboration, two different but intrinsically linked artworks were produced and placed in two prominent locations: Embrace at Munro Martin Park and Reflection at the Founders Green in the JCU Cairns campus.

Woopen Creek based sculptor, Braham Stevens, designed the piece to withstand the harsh tropical conditions and maintain a 'timeless' character. Embrace is a nine-metre tall sculpture, made from laser-cut, heavy gauge steel.

Braham draws influence from the patterns, colours and relationships found in nature. 'Embrace' expresses the diverse native flora, fauna and geology of the Cairns tropical region. A sensual piece, it suggests a reef and delta ecosystem. Tectonic exterior plates allude to the region's volatile volcanic prehistoric past. The sculpture comprises two opposing marine inspired forms embracing in a fluid 'dance of life'. Constructed from heavy gauge laser-cut steel, the organic sculpture explores the main themes of environment, connection to place and being.

LOCATION: Opposite CPAC at Munro Martin Parklands, corner of Sheridan and Florence Street.