_Backwash_ was created as a response to the wildfires that swept through south-eastern Australia in the summer of 2019, causing extreme environmental damage on a scale that had never been seen before. The work is a reflection on the mortality of civilisation as well as the futility and self-absorption of its daily business. The composition places the chaotic backwash at its centre and ranges the more relatable details at its periphery, which frames the viewer within its commentary on inattention. I have included, for the careful observer, a cameo appearance of Philip Larkin's 'black- / Sailed unfamiliar, towing at her back / A huge and birdless silence'. Please visit https://quarryman655082795.wordpress.com/ to see high-quality images of my works.