Aboriginal and Pacific art: Collections and artists, then and now.
OAS in conjunction with the Art Gallery of New South Wales and Australian Museum, 1-3 February 2019
Image: Iatmul people, Papua New Guinea Gable mask mid 20th century (detail) © Iatmul people, under the endorsement of the Pacific Islands Museums Association’s (PIMA) Code of Ethics
After the stunning success of the 8th OAS Forum at the Savage Club in Melbourne in October last year, the Forum 2019 Subcommittee convened by Chris Boylan is making great progress with organising the next three-day programme in partnership with the Australian Museum and the Art Gallery of NSW. Here are a few highlights.
Curators will talk about three exhibitions at the AGNSW: Melanesian Art Redux (works shown in the 1966 Melanesian art exhibition curated by Tuckson), Nongirrna Marawili (Contemporary Australian artist) and The Abstract Sublime (Tony Tuckson) All three can be pre-viewed on the website of the AGNSW. Maia Nuku, from the Metropolitan in New York will be the keynote speaker. Early historical film footage and short documentaries with subjects from Melanesia will be shown.
At the Australian Museum, Curator Michael Mel will present the newly opened ‘Long Gallery’. The archival material of the Garden Palace Exhibition in 1879-80 will be presented by curators. The Wiradjuri, Kamilaroi artist Jonathan Jones’ Kaldor Public Art Project (Skin and Bones) held in the Botanic Gardens in 2016 interrogated the repercussions of the destruction by fire of the Palace and its cultural treasures. Jonathan has accepted an invitation to be a special guest speaker at the Forum.
And, for the total art fanatics, Brisbane and its 9th Asia Pacific Triennial ending 28 April is a possible extension. The Chinese New Year, which attracts half a million visitors in Sydney is on 5 February 2019. So early bookings are advised.