Current & Upcoming Exhibitions
ART IN CONFLICT
4 November 2023 - 14 January 2024
Art in Conflict is an exhibition of contemporary art from the collection of the Australian War Memorial. Three major bodies of work debuted in this exhibition: two recent official war art commissions – Susan Norrie (Iraq, 2016) and Megan Cope (Middle East, 2017) – and a landmark commemorative work by Angelica Mesiti.
A showcase of diverse responses to war, the exhibition includes more than seventy paintings, drawings, films, prints, photography and sculptures. Leading Australian artists are represented, such as Khadim Ali, Rushdi Anwar, eX de Medici, Denise Green, Richard Lewer, Mike Parr, Tony Albert, Paddy Bedford, Robert Campbell Jr, Michael Cook, Shirley Macnamara and Betty Muffler.
Contemporary artists’ responses to conflict bring to light untold stories, reveal neglected histories and deepen our understanding of Australia’s experience of conflict, both past and present.
An Australia War Memorial Touring Exhibition
Image credit: Simon Gende, Plane crash into the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, 2012, acrylic on canvas, ART96124, Image courtesy of the Australian War Memorial.
RONDA SHARPE
INTERWOVEN CONNECTIONS
4 November 2023 - 14 January 2024
Interwoven Connections is a fibre art exhibition by Parkes-based Wiradjuri artist Ronda Sharpe that explores her connections to Wiradjuri culture, country, artefacts and Mother Earth. Sharpe’s practice incorporates recycled mediums and natural fibres, combined with cultural weaving practices to explore the links between Wiradjuri culture and our current throwaway society. Interwoven Connections is a body of work that explores Sharpe’s journey of reconnecting and embracing her unspoken and lost Wiradjuri cultural identity, as she reflects on the ongoing role that cultural artefacts play in the survival and resilience of the voices of the Aboriginal community.
Curated by Mariam Abboud.
This is a HomeGround exhibition, produced by the WPCC and supported by Orana Arts. HomeGround is sponsored by Wingewarra Dental.
IN CONVERSATION SATURDAY 4 NOVEMBER 2PM
Image Credit: Ronda Sharpe, The Wiradjuri land and people of the three rivers, 2020, recycled fibre optic cables, aluminium rings, palm fronds. Image © artist.
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HAYDEN FOWLER
BEHAVIOUR
4 November 2023 - 14 January 2024
Hayden Fowler's practice engages with the natural world, animals, and humanity's impact on both. His work acknowledges the psychological, spiritual and cultural significance of the human-nature relationship; and explores animist, indigenous and mythological world views.
Fowler’s practice involves long periods of research and the development of conceptually layered works - depicting scenes ranging from pristine futuristic interiors, to apocalyptic/post-human landscapes and speculative regenerative ecologies. Within these spaces, relationships between plants, animals and technology unfold, weaving mysticism, architecture, technology and life forms into strange new systems.
This exhibition presents newly acquired works to the Western Plains Cultural Centre Collection.
Curated by Kent Buchanan
Image Credit: Hayden Fowler, Australia (detail), 2017, polymer, plaster, sound, 140 x 100 x 100cm. Collection Western Plains Cultural Centre, donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program.
FROM THE VAULT
BEST IN SHOW:
150 YEARS OF THE DUBBO SHOW
16 October 2023 - 5 May 2024
Are you going to the show? - a question asked each year as the Dubbo showground is transformed, with rides and stalls, animals and ribbons, handmade cakes, quilts and of course the Dagwood Dog.
The Show, a distinctly Australian event, is more than just an agricultural festival promoting farming and produce, it offers a blend of entertainment, commerce, and education that celebrates our communities. Even today, more Australian’s visit their local show each year than any other single event. This year we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Dubbo Show with an exhibition that explores the history and significance of this cultural icon.
From the Vault is supported by Create NSW
Curated by Simone Taylor
Image Credit: L-R: Simone Taylor, Dubbo Show 2023, Dubbo Regional Council; Photographer Unknown, Horse and rider in demonstration, Dubbo Agricultural Show, April 1932. Local studies Collection, Dubbo Regional Council, 1994_425_PHO/ Simone Taylor, Dubbo Show 2023, Dubbo Regional Council
1X4
8 July - 31 December 2023
Museums use objects to tell stories. It sounds simple but it’s complicated. Objects can tell multiple stories from many points of view. So, who chooses the story? Which story is the truth? In museums, curators choose an interpretation but 1X4 turns this upside down. Each object in this exhibition tells four distinct stories. You can listen to or read each of the four stories … or some … or none and just enjoy the beauty of the objects. Every story is the truth about the object and is a valid way to view the object, but they are all different.
A touring exhibition developed by Newcastle Museum
Image Credit: Newcastle Museum
CEREMONY:
4TH INDIGENOUS
ART TRIENNIAL
20 January - 12 May 2024
Ceremony remains central to the creative practice of many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. This exhibition and program of events will animate and heal to reveal how ceremony is at the nexus of Country, of culture and of community.
From the intimate and personal to the collective and collaborative, ceremonies manifest through visual art, film, music and dance. Ceremonial practice has a performative element. At its heart is the concept of iteration, the artist’s conscious engagement with what has come before. Iteration can be expressed in the painted minutiae of tali (sandhills) or the click of a shutter.
The Triennial is the National Gallery’s flagship exhibition of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art. The National Indigenous Art Triennial is made possible through the continued generosity of the National Gallery’s Indigenous Arts Partner Wesfarmers Arts and key philanthropic supporters.
Curated by Hetti Perkins, Arrernte and Kalkadoon peoples, Senior Curator-at-large, with National Gallery Curators
Image credit: Joel Bray, Wiradjuri people, Giraaru Galing Gaanhagirri (still), 2022, commissioned by the National Gallery of Australia, Kamberri/Canberra for the 4th National Indigenous Art Triennial: Ceremony, created in consultation with Uncle James Ingram and Wagga Wagga Elders, and with support from City of Melbourne, Phillip Keir and Sarah Benjamin (the Keir Foundation), City of Port Phillip, Create NSW, Blacktown Arts, Arts Centre Melbourne, and Yirramboi Festival 2020, image courtesy and © the artist
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PEOPLE PLACES POSSESSIONS
DUBBO STORIES
Permanent Exhibition
The history of Dubbo told through the people who lived here. Stories of hardship, perseverance, ingenuity, tragedy and joy – Dubbo’s past is at once surprising and enlightening.
Telling the story of a place and its people is made easier by examining the myriad of ways we document, express and articulate our experiences. For a museum, the photographs, books, objects and official records help us to record history. The archives held by the WPCC allow community members to access this material for research or general interest. From diaries and ledgers to photographs that transport us back in time, the WPCC Collection provides a unique portal to our past.
Image Credit: Maker unknown, Shoe – Female – Chinese, date unknown. Red satin. Braid edging continues down to the toe. Calico sole with embroidery under the heel. Bird and flower embroidery. Orange tie embroidered in shades of blue. Designed for the custom of bound feet. Collection WPCC.