See Revised Edition 

See Revised Edition exemplifies the artist’s undeniable fondness for found objects which he generally reclaims, decontextualizes and repurposes to ultimately transpose their original meaning into a new one. By recycling the old to make it new, an inescapable iconography already permeates Nicholls’s work. Originally found at a local market, the discarded and tattered leather-bound history book on Australasia is literally caged under lock and key, thanks to the use of custom studded metal straps wrapped across it in an undeniably symbolic manner.

Formally reminiscent of old prison doors, the hand-patinaed studded cage in See Revised Edition does not just provide a thoughtful glimpse into Australia’s past as a penal colony. By leaving the clearly identifiable gold-leaf coat of arms at the center of the metal binding structure, the artist casts a nostalgic look at Australian history and the way it was once taught. The perennity of the metal cage sharply contrasts with the fragility of the decaying paper; by locking away the content spilled across the pages, the artist brings our focus to such topical questions as freedom of speech and the revised cultural approach to our common history. Undoubtedly, by trapping history in a cage, the work simply questions our relationship to our own past.