摘要：This paper describes a practice-led research project undertaken in Australia in 2006, in which I sought to explore the relationship between radical changes in cultural/geographical environment and the production of unique forms of material culture. In this case the shift in environment was brought about by migration (enforced or otherwise) from the UK to colonial Australia, and the crafted artefacts of the colonial period (and after) were taken as representative of a particularly Australian material culture. As a maker it was important to me that this research was developed primarily through practice, supported by museum/archive study and fieldwork in Australia. The project therefore proposed a range of historical Australian artefacts as the subject of study, and my own creative practice as the vehicle of study.In section 1 (fieldwork), I describe the initial boundaries of the project, list the research questions, and consider the project's location and its context within the wider objectives of the Here and There (HAT) project. Specific artefacts and objects are identified and described, as representative of a unique material culture. Section 2 (reflective practice) considers some of the ethical issues encountered and describes the evolution of my research focus during the early stages of the project, particularly the discovery of depression era 'making-do' artefacts, and a growing interest in Australian folk narratives and 'icons' of popular culture. It then describes the development of a series of works made in response to the initial Australian fieldwork over the following two years of studio practice in the UK. Section 3 (conclusion) reflects upon the outcomes of the study - in particular the practical and conceptual changes undertaken in my creative practice as a result of the project - and lists the exhibitions, conferences and articles through which the Beyond the seas project has since been disseminated.
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