Quietly released in late September by artist/author Rhonda Ayliffe, Ash Alchemy Abecedary: the A-Z of bushfire recovery in Cobargo, presents an overview of the primary projects and players involved in the first five years of recovery of the Cobargo village in the aftermath of the Badja Fire.

This version of the Abecedary, edited and printed specifically for the local community, is based on a larger limited edition artist’s book of the same name submitted as part fulfilment for Rhonda’s PhD research project.

The entries in the Abecedary have been arranged alphabetically and offer two different perspectives of Cobargo’s recovery journey. One narrative is modelled on ChatGPT and shares the facts and figures. When the book is flipped over, the second narrative, while equally factual, has an ironic and world-weary tone and entries are occasionally playful or sweary. The book is punctuated by images, also created by the artist, that either reflect the entries or hint at an alternate perspective.

The Abecedary includes entries on the main street rebuild, the painted poles and community tree projects, the various major grant schemes and funding provided, and documentaries that featured Cobargo. As a factual, albeit creative but incomplete account of different aspects of the town’s recovery, the Abecedary offers an account of who, what, where, when and how recovery occurred in the district.

The accompanying PhD thesis, Ash Alchemy: Art after Fire, shares how material for the Abecedary was selected and verified. A free digital PDF copy of the thesis is available on request and soon will be freely available for download from the University of Canberra.

Only a limited number of copies of the full colour
Ash Alchemy Abecedary have been printed and these are available directly from the artist/author. Ten percent of the purchase price will be donated to the Cobargo Bushfire Resilience Centre.

Contact Rhonda Ayliffe (rhonda.ayliffe@gmail.com) for more details or catch up in person throughout October and November at 10.00 am on Saturday mornings in front of the Resilience Cobargo building.

Rhonda Ayliffe