A popular design centre in Tasmania's north has reopened its doors after concerns about a suspected termite infestation.

Design Tasmania has been closed since Thursday after evidence was found that termites may have been in an artwork which arrived from the United States.  The artwork Gathering Object was shipped to the island state as part of an exhibition called Pro Paradox, curated by Kirsha Kaechele, wife of MONA founder David Walsh.

The centre's chief executive, Karina Clarke, said the piece was made from the wood of houses which had been damaged in Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

"Kirsha has made a huge investment in bringing this piece into Design Tasmania. It's quite an extraordinary piece of work and very valuable," she said.  Ms Clarke said the art hub was fumigated after some granulation was discovered on top of the piece.

"Whilst it's somewhat inconclusive, it might appear that there were termites, living termites, within the woodwork so it was quarantined," she said.
Ms Clarke said she was confident the incident had not posed a wider risk.

"Quarantine inspectors didn't find any live insects. There's been no contact with the natural environment for anything to have escaped that might impact our Tasmanian ecology."

Ms Kaechele, who set up a project in New Orleans after Katrina, said the piece was "very personal" to her and there was no point in taking "risks".

"That the sculpture is literally made from the debris of the art spaces is a meaningful link to that very vital time and place in New Orleans," she said. Some of the wood has trace marks from previous infestations, a feature the artist considered when choosing the wood for its intricate patterns.

"They suspected that the piece had some sort of termite; we're not sure whether they are living or there was remnant dust from a previous infestation," she explained.

Ms Kaechelle said that since being placed on display the artwork had "no infestations".
"It's been on display elsewhere for seven years with no issue."

Artist Thomas Beale said while he was thrilled to have his work on display in Tasmania, "the last thing I would wish is to have unwittingly delivered an infestation".

"While all reasonable precautions were taken to deliver the piece in a museum-ready state, I am happy to know that the centre underwent an additional round of fumigations, and my artwork can now perform its primary role of bringing people together, certifiably without bugs," he said.
Pro Paradox runs until the end of May.

The artwork will then become a permanent fixture at MONA.

Full article and images from ABC News (24 April 2017)

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