More Fragile Than Fearsome is an experiential typographic installation that directly unveils Iain McCalman’s personal voyage down the Great Barrier Reef. The installation explores the collision of perspectives between Western explorers and Indigenous settlers around protection and conservation, illuminating the reasons behind the fragile state of the reef. Inherently, shaping and maturing McCalman’s own personal understanding and experience of the decrepit state of the Great Barrier Reef. 

The piece can be manipulated to both expand and contract, in order to identify past and present events that have contributed to the destruction of the reef. When expanded, the installation acts as a timeline, whereby the audience is invited to walk through McCalman’s voyage and experience the multifaceted individual connections with the reef. The installation takes the audience on a journey through McCalman’s voyage, whilst simultaneously educating the concerns and threats to the Great Barrier Reef.