Make a visit to Caloundra Regional Gallery a priority to experience a limited-time exhibition celebrating First Nations Peoples artwork that will be unveiled on Saturday, July 18.
Drawn from the Sunshine Coast Art Collection, the exhibition works tell the stories of Country, both connection to, and the removal from, and reflect the past and current future of the oldest continuing culture in the world.
Community Portfolio Councillor Rick Baberowski said the exhibition featured local and nationally significant First Nations artists and their stories.
“This is the first time in the Gallery’s 20 year history that the complete holdings of First Nations Peoples artworks from the Sunshine Coast Art Collection will be on display together,” Cr Baberowski said.
“The Sunshine Coast Art Collection has become a significant community asset and it’s a special moment to be able to share these works with the community in one exhibition that celebrates and represents expressions of First Nations culture through art.
“I encourage everybody to make a visit to the gallery and immerse themselves in these exceptionally strong artworks and stories.”
Council’s Sunshine Coast Art Collection Curator Nina Shadforth said the collection included works by a number of renowned artists.
“The complete suite of Tony Albert’s 50perCENT series gifted by the artist through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program will be on display. These works signify a reframing of identity, reimagining current pop culture heroes and spokespeople for Indigenous youth,” Ms Shadforth said.
“The exhibition will display three works by the first ever Sunshine Coast Art Prize winner Shane Pickett. These works are depictions of his Country in Western Australia, the Glass House Mountains and a sunset during a hail storm, inspired by the first time he ever saw hail, which was painted during a residency here on the Sunshine Coast.
“Bianca Beetson’s work gives a contemporary take on loss through her ‘Self-portrait’ series recently gifted by the artist to the Collection.
“The First Nations Artworks exhibition presents a well-rounded selection of contemporary new media works and traditional paintings that are a celebration, plus collaborative pieces of community working together.”
Several works were acquired through Sunshine Coast Council’s Reconciliation Action Plan and through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program.
Exhibiting artists:
- Tony Albert
- Bianca Beetson
- Steven Bond
- Paul Constable-Calcott
- Arthur Conlan
- Joyce Crain
- Bridgette Chilly Davis
- Michael Cook
- Joanne Currie Nalingu
- Lyndon Davis
- Belle Hartnell
- Margaret Loy Pula
- Dale Manns
- Jason Murphy
- Nuuna
- Hope O’Chin
- Shane Pickett
- Roanna Rendall
- Melinda Serico
- Reggie Sultan-Pengarte
The exhibition will close on Sunday, August 2.
Visit the gallery website for more details.