MADDISON KITCHING
Towards meaning
Maddison Kitching (1989) is an early-career artist based in Naarm/Melbourne whose work investigates human relationships with the more-than-human world. Towards meaning was initially informed by a 2022 residency in Mexico City, where Kitching’s focus shifted from Australian animals to the endemic Mexican salamander the axolotl. Discovering parallels between the koala and the axolotl—both iconic symbols of their respective countries—became the catalyst for Towards meaning which has since evolved during his time living in Mexico City.
This series is a body of work centred on the symbolic significance of the axolotl, native to the lakes of Mexico. This creature represents a paradox, being critically endangered in the wild while thriving in captivity. The axolotl is embedded in Mexican culture - it embodies the Aztec God Xolotl, appears on the 50-peso note, plays a pivotal role in human organ regeneration, and exists in an array of mutant variants due to selective breeding and genetic modification. Once naturally brown, the axolotl has been altered to display a spectrum of colours, including pink, red and ultraviolet hues. These modifications, achieved by integrating jellyfish DNA, have even changed the colour of its eyes, symbolically shifting its perspective.
Towards meaning imagines a process of transformation through circular forms which reference the eyes of the axolotl - eyes that have witnessed the divine world of the gods, the natural world, scientific laboratories and now the confines of domestic aquariums. This series reflects on what it means for an animal to carry mythological weight while confined to captivity. It invites viewers to contemplate the complex roles humans play in the preservation, domestication, and modification of these creatures.
Slithers, 2024, oil and acrylic paint on canvas, 115 x 88 cm
