Previous exhibitions 2011
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1 October 2011 – 15 Jan 2012 | Australian galleries
Good, Strong, Powerful is an exhibition featuring the works of 10 established and emerging Aboriginal artists from three Art Centres in the Northern Territory. A collaboration between Artback NT and curator Penny Campton, the exhibition celebrates the ongoing production of good, strong and powerful art by these artists and reflects traditional and contemporary subjects through both painting and drawings.
Peggy Jones Napangardi – Julalikari Arts Soakage 1997 (detail) Acrylic paint on cotton duck 45 x 55 cm Collection of Penny Watson
Upstairs downstairs: Photographs of Britain
1874-1990
3 September 2011 – 18 December 2011 | Photospace
The social documentary tradition, focusing on the lives of ordinary people – usually those powerless to tell their story – has been a driving force in British photography. Upstairs downstairs: photographs of Britain 1974–1990 showcases some of the National Gallery of Australia's best examples from this period.
Lewis Morley Black couple and carousel at Hampstead fun fair c.1959 (detail) National Gallery of Australia, Canberra © Lewis Morley
Infinite Horizons
12 August 2011 – 6 November 2011
Fred Williams is one of Australia’s greatest painters. He created a highly original and distinctive way of seeing the Australian landscape and was passionate about the painting process itself. This is the first major retrospective of Williams’ work in over 25 years.
Fred Williams, Beachscape, Erith Island I 1974, (detail) National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, Purchased from Gallery admission charges 1983 © estate of Fred Williams
Australian prints 1900 –1940
19 June 2010 – 14 August 2011
In the Japanese manner highlights the work of Australian artists inspired by the traditional Japanese woodblock printing art of ukiyo-e. This exhibition presents a rare opportunity to observe how Australian artists adapted the style and technique of Japanese woodblock printing to form a distinctly Australian aesthetic. The influences of Japanese art initially came to prominence in Europe in the 1850s through woodblock prints. Their radical forms, cropped figures, flat colours and unique compositions transformed the art world at the time and by the 1900s this influence had spread to Australia. Its effect on the art world was revolutionary.
The artists selected for In the Japanese manner represent some of the most well known in Australian art including Paul Haefliger, Margaret Preston, Thea Proctor, Ethel Spowers, Lionel Lindsay, Violet Teague and Napier Waller.
Murray Griffin 'Cannas' 1935 colour linocut, Collection of the National Gallery of Australia
Pacific arts from the Solomon Islands
24 February – 29 May 2011 | Orde Poynton Gallery
Varilaku: Pacific arts from the Solomon Islands is the first major exhibition in Australia bringing together the finest traditional arts from the Solomons.
The Solomon Islands have an incredible history of warfare and art with early European accounts noting the artistic attention given to the decoration on weapons and raiding canoes.
Roviana People Roviana Lagoon, New Georgia Group, Western Province, Solomon Islands Portrait bust of a Young Man 1870–1900 wood, paint, shell, hair 33 x 26 x 22 cm National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, purchased 2007
16 October 2010 – 18 Sept 2011 | Childrens Gallery
Connections explores the rich conversations that can take place between works of art across cultures, place and time.
Islamic works of art are paired with others in the national art collection under themes such as calligraphy, geometry, colour and the garden. Visitors will discover the beauty and diversity of Islamic art and develop an understanding of its influence around the world.
Iran Tile 17th century National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, bequest of William F Wells