Mother Lode
Elise Cakebread, 2025
150cm x 340cm
In ‘Mother Lode’ Elise explores Ballarat’s history as the birthplace of Australian Democracy as a backdrop to continuing issues around gender-based violence and the local reckoning with historical institutional sexual abuse. Seeking to create an uplifting response, Elise incorporates emergent symbols like stars, ribbons, and gold, alongside other emblems of the region, to express solidarity and acknowledge these challenges. ‘Mother Lode’ embodies a guiding spirit—a golden goddess or Madonna-like figure with arms (or wings) outstretched. Representing an archetypal mother and a symbol of resilience and renewal, the piece holds space for difficult histories while offering hope for transformation and re-emergence.
Mother Lodeis created from found materials from Elise’s local community – the Ballarat and Goldfields region of Victoria – the detritus of 21st century domestic life, ribbons, tinsel, yarns, threads, wire, sparkly dresses, packing materials, tablecloths, old baby clothes, nighties, decorative braid, dance costumes, tulle and a yellow/gold satin single bed coverlet.With the coverlet acting as a canvas the rest of these materials have been deconstructed and re-interpreted using techniques grounded in Elise’s textile practice. The materials have been cut out, shredded, carded, felted and layered together with repetitive and chaotically unstructured hand stitching.
