Join us for an evening of poetry within a spontaneous soundscape. ‘How to Read A City, Your Place of Last Resort’ is a stirring meditation on climate change and the natural world composed by punk rock drummer, Richard Lawson with Artistic Director of the project, Elizabeth Walton reading from her poetry cycle of the same name.
Thursday 14 May, 6pm-8pm
Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf
Cost: $25, includes refreshments.
Bookings essential.
https://poeticapetit2026.eventbrite.com.au
A spontaneous soundscape inspired by observations drawn from iNaturalist citizen science findings, Elizabeth Walton’s Seven Breaths – a Pavane for A Dying Planet — is a protective spell for a southern lowland wet coastal forest. This atmospheric encounter of ecological records is expressed through improvised piano, synths and punk-timpani in this performance of a prayer to protect ecological communities from mass extinction. “The physics and speed of sound subtly become a heat ratio warning for extinction thresholds,
Described by artist, Imants Tillers, as “a beautifully nuanced and balanced combination of original musical composition and performance, imagery and spoken word,” this project responds to the urgency of climate grief and the quiet beauty of still-wild places. Each piece in this song cycle reflects our contemporary interphase with city life and the natural world, exploring the Symbiocene as an urgent and critical response to the extinction crisis. This work invites listeners to slow down and listen deeply, in a performance which blends science with lush string textures, evocative contemporary harmonies and melodic lines which trace a journey through changing landscapes, and ecologies. “This cycle is my way of listening to the land,” says composer Richard Lawson. “It’s easy to feel lost sometimes, or hopeless, but I see so much hope for this beautiful world. In this performance, we invite you to meet us there.”
Elizabeth Walton is a writer, musician and cross-disciplinary artist/performer. Elizabeth received an Anne Edgeworth Fellowship in 2023 and shortlisting in Woollahra Digital Literary Awards (2023) and Furphy Literary Prize (2024). 2nd Prize: Robyn Mathison, June Shenfield and Passionfruit Poetry (UK) prizes (2025). Her journalism has appeared in The Guardian, New York Times, Reuters, ABC and The Australian. Creative works have appeared in Overland, The London Reader, Portside Review among other places. Her short poetry cycle, How to Read A City, Your Place of Last Resort, will be published by 5 Islands Press in 2026.
Richard Lawson is a three-time ARIA-nominated multi-instrumentalist and recording artist whose career spans five decades. With The Lime Spiders, he became the first drummer ever to appear on ABC TV’s RAGE and was a regular on Countdown. Signed to Virgin Records, the band toured internationally with Blondie, Iggy Pop, The Ramones and The Cult, and reached #1 on the U.S. college charts. Lawson’s solo work has been praised by Rolling Stone, and he has released more than 20 full-length albums, collaborating across contemporary music with artists including Caitlin Harnett, Ben Fowler, Elizabeth Walton and Acacia Quartet.
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