Sump system
(2015-2016)
- Medium
- gouache on three sheets
- Measurements
- (a-c) 119.5 × 727.0 cm (overall)
- Place/s of Execution
- Melbourne, Victoria
- Accession Number
- 2016.660
- Department
- Australian Prints & Drawings
- Credit Line
- National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased, Victorian Foundation for Living Australian Artists, 2016
© Courtesy of the artist and Murray White Room - Gallery location
- Not on display
- About this work
-
In this vast triptych Richard Giblett depicts a complex network of tower blocks, chimneys, funnels and pipes, which is mirrored in a deep black sump that resembles a massive pool of black oil. This industrial landscape draws attention to the consumption of resources in today’s cities, and recognisable icons of corporations and international brands, including IBM, Hilton, IKEA and McDonald’s, can be identified within this labyrinthine structure. Giblett imagines a dystopian world of mass production – the ‘sump system’ that underpins our consumer habits and yet remains largely invisible.