Matthew Harding is a Sydney born, Melbourne based contemporary artist who works in public art, sculpture and design. Matthew studied design at ANU’s Canberra school of Art and began his career working primarily in 2D mediums. In a career spanning close to 30 years he has become well known for his ability to work with a variety of different materials, producing a catalogue of award winning work.

One of his most recent pieces ‘Fruition’ can be found on the corner of Flemington road and Royal Park in Parkville. The piece is made up of two giant Corten ‘pods’ which have axis of 6.5m and 4.2m. The piece has experienced a very welcome reception, with to our knowledge no bad responses in the media. One of the reasons this may be is because of its organic nature. Unlike many public art pieces these days, Fruition strives to be a product of its environment instead of trying to define its environment.

This is a true testament to Harding’s abilities as an artist. The use of Corten steel plays a big part in achieving this integration by creating a natural appearance that degenerates over time, much like that of a seed pod. He has said in the past that his desire is to make objects that feed the spirit. If a sculpture which represents the life of its surrounds doesn’t encapsulate this, what does?