The void is a multifaceted concept which brings together contemporary Aboriginal artistic practice from across the country. The work of the included artists does not simply define the void as presence and comparative absence, but rather they utilise form to represent the formless.
The exhibition features existing works across the mediums of drawing, painting, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, video and photography by artists including Pepai Jangala Carroll, Jonathan Jones, Mabel Juli, John Mawurndjul AM, Hayley Millar-Baker, Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri, Mr R Peters, Doreen Reid Nakamarra, Andy Snelgar, Dr. Thancoupie Gloria Fletcher AO, Freddie Timms, James Tylor, Jennifer Wurrkidj and Josephine Wurrkidj.
“The void is a complex space of exclusion and inclusion, definition and deliberate ambiguity. But as these artists demonstrate, the void is always lived upon, navigated and known even as it remains unseen, unknown and undefined,” Void Curator Emily McDaniel said.
Emily McDaniel is an independent curator, writer and educator passionate about storytelling and facilitating conversations, and is from the Kalari Clan of the Wiradjuri nation in central New South Wales. She recently held the position of Coordinator of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Learning Programs at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia.
Writer Bruce Pascoe said in his introductory essay to Void: “These images and objects are not to be glanced at, one more demand on our crowded attention, they are to be looked at, considered, absorbed. They are of country, our shared country. We share this country now. All of us. It is too late to pretend that the past theft of land can be completely reversed, we are all in it together now.”
On Friday 7 May at 5.15pm, Emily McDaniel will host a floor talk on the exhibition Void, providing insights into the concept of the void in Indigenous ways of knowing and seeing. Following the talk, the exhibition will be officially opened at 6pm. Bookings are essential due to capacity limits and tickets cost $20: https://mayopenings.eventbrite.com.au
Void will be on display at Tweed Regional Gallery & Margaret Olley Art Centre from Friday 7 May until Sunday 4 July 2021
The exhibition is in conjunction with UTS Gallery and Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, presented nationally by Museums & Galleries of NSW. This project has been assisted by the Australian Government’s Visions of Australia program and through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body.
