JEN BEREAN & JAMES CAREY
Soft Grates
6 February → 20 December 2026
Soft Grates is a multi-part installation that asks us to consider how we relate to natural and human-made water systems as they present themselves in civic and domestic environments. Conceived and created by Naarm (Melbourne)-based artists, Jen Berean and James Carey, this newly commissioned work is highly sculptural — combining material investigation, architectural intervention and forensic study.
Using PICA’s existing plumbing system, Soft Grates literally draws water from within the building, redirecting copper piping through the gallery wall to make the presence of water visible. As the single pipe drips at regular intervals throughout the day and year, recycled polymer stormwater pits placed along the mezzanine floor capture time and material in liquid volume. Finished with custom-made grates of fine metal chain that soften and reimagine the rigidity of everyday utilitarian materials, these vessels reference the hidden infrastructures beneath our built environments.
Accompanying this central work, are audio recordings of water made at the multiple sites from which the water in PICA’s building are sourced, including Mirabooka Ground Water and Mundaring Weir. Audible across two levels of PICA via its central stairwell, this sound component allows us to hear the many sites from which Boorloo’s metropolitan water supplies travel. These recordings reference not only the tentacle-like systems of water that nourish us but also conjure the liquid ‘spirit’ of the building itself.
The final element of Soft Grates is a copper sheet located on PICA’s mezzanine level, gradually oxidising in response to the building’s internal climate. This sheet corresponds to one of PICA’s quarterly water bills; the cost translated directly into an equivalent value of copper. Through these interconnected components, Soft Grates invites visitors to consider how institutions mark time and hold memory through our relationship to water.
Soft Grates is presented as part of PICA’s annual Judy Wheeler Commission series. Established in 2022, this ten-year program funds an annual site-specific work by an Australian visual artist/s that responds physically or conceptually to the architecture and history of the building. Made possible through a philanthropic gift made by the Simpson Family, this series embodies PICA’s spirit of risk and experimentation, celebrating the power of art to connect people and places.
The Judy Wheeler Commission is made possible by the generosity of the Simpson Family.
Image Caption: Jen Berean and James Carey, Soft Grates 2026, Judy Wheeler Commission, installation view, Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts (PICA), 2026. Photo: Guy Louden.
