More About the Work

The Scott Sisters is a story about transformation—not only in nature, but in the ways knowledge is observed, recorded, preserved and passed from one generation to the next.

Drawing on archival materials held in the collections of the State Library of New South Wales, the work traces a remarkable chain of curiosity, creativity and collecting that spans more than two centuries. Through theatre, animation and music, it brings to life the people, places and ideas behind one of Australia's most significant scientific and artistic achievements: Australian Lepidoptera and Their Transformations.

At the centre of the story are Harriet and Helena Scott, two pioneering natural history artists whose extraordinary observations of Australian butterflies and moths remain among the finest scientific illustrations produced in nineteenth-century Australia. Working alongside their father, the naturalist Alexander Walker Scott, the sisters devoted decades to documenting every stage of insect metamorphosis with scientific precision and artistic beauty. What began as a family passion evolved into an ambitious fifty-year project that would become one of colonial Australia's most important natural history publications.

Yet the story is about more than moths and butterflies.

Interwoven throughout the performance are selected extracts from Beethoven's String Quartet in A minor, Op.132. Composed in 1825 following a period of serious illness, the work stands as one of the composer's most personal and profound creations. At its centre lies the celebrated Heiliger Dankgesang ("Holy Song of Thanksgiving"), written as Beethoven emerged from sickness into recovery. The music moves between fragility and strength, suffering and renewal, tracing a journey that mirrors the transformations observed by the Scott sisters in the natural world. Like the butterfly emerging from its chrysalis, Beethoven's quartet becomes an expression of resilience, regeneration and reawakening.

The story begins with Augusta Scott (née Frederick), born in 1775, the matriarch of a remarkable family whose descendants would leave an enduring mark on Australia's scientific, artistic, social and cultural life. Her son Alexander became a leading naturalist; her granddaughters Harriet and Helena transformed observation into art and science; her granddaughter Rose Scott became one of Australia's foremost advocates for women's rights and social reform; and her grandson David Scott Mitchell assembled the collection that would become the foundation of the Mitchell Library.

The performance explores the connections between these lives and the ways knowledge survives across generations. Harriet and Helena's illustrations, letters and observations became books. Those books became part of David Scott Mitchell's collection. That collection became part of the State Library. Today, those same objects inspire new artistic responses and new audiences.

There are other ways of recording, preserving and transmitting knowledge that this story also seeks to honour. Long before European naturalists began documenting Australia's insects, First Nations peoples understood transformation as a fundamental principle of life, embedded in stories, Country and the interconnected relationships between all living things. Through generations, knowledge was shared, renewed and carried forward through oral traditions, cultural practice and careful observation of the natural world.

The story places the Scott family story within this broader landscape of observation, memory and renewal. Guided by the perspective of an Awabakal mother living on Country during the nineteenth century, the work acknowledges the many ways knowledge is created, preserved and passed from one generation to the next.

The animated imagery featured throughout the performance is drawn directly from objects held in the State Library's collections, including the extraordinary illustrations created by Harriet and Helena Scott. Some copies of Australian Lepidoptera and Their Transformations preserved within the Library still bear the name of David Scott Mitchell inside the cover—a tangible reminder of the family's connection to the collections that preserve their legacy.

Ultimately, it’is a story about passion and preservation.

Harriet and Helena Scott preserved fleeting moments of transformation in nature. Rose Scott sought to transform society. David Scott Mitchell preserved the documentary record of a nation. The State Library continues that work today, caring for collections so that future generations may discover them anew.

The journey of these drawings—from observation in the Australian landscape, to publication in a landmark scientific works, to the shelves of David Scott Mitchell's library, to the collections of the State Library, and now to the stage—forms a story of transformation every bit as remarkable as the metamorphoses they depict.