Australian Megafauna at Australian National Botanical Gardens

An example of the Schouten paintings

Australian wildlife artist, author and paleontological illustrator, Peter Schouten AM has fourteen of his works exhibited at the small gallery in the Visitors’ Centre at the Australian National Botanical Gardens. Drawing on his research Schouten has represented animals that predate our current fauna and includes forebears of Kangaroos, Goannas, Wambats and other fauna that are much larger and often more ferocious looking than their modern counterparts.

The exhibition is accompanied by large fibreglass sculptures of the megafauna on a trail outside in the gardens with explanatory panels for visitors. The exhibition runs from 23 June – 25 July; 9.30 am–4.30 pm and more details are on the website https://parksaustralia.gov.au/botanic-gardens/do/whats-on/exhibitions/australian-megafauna/

Angela Brennan – Forms of Life @ Ian Potter Museum of Art

5 Sept 25 Feb 2018

Angela Brennan has mounted an exhibition at the Ian Potter Museum of Art that plays with ancient artifacts discovered by Melbourne University Archaeological expeditions. The pottery is colourful and varied and is inspired by a set of pots that are also displayed in the gallery. She has added some dresses inspired by the same ancient cultures. The gallery web page is below.

http://www.art-museum.unimelb.edu.au/exhibitions/exhib-date/2017-09-05/exhib/angela-brennan-forms-of-life

 

Biographies – Martin Rowney @ Belconnen Arts Centre

29 July – 20 August 2017

Small targeted exhibitions are often surprisingly interesting.  Martin Rowney has five works on display at the Belconnen Arts Centre around the lives of four people. Each of the art works have unique elements in them that speak to the life and individual and reflect the back story that is displayed on the wall. Each of the works has an artistic interest and merit in itself but become richer with the person’s brief bio in mind.

Rowney is an archaeologist who uses art to communicate elements of his work. The pics and gallery materials are below.

Escape from Pompei @ Australian National Maritime Museum

Historical blockbusters are things I stand in awe of. I love the curation. I love the presence of ancient objects. I love the maps, the quotes, the carvings and the historical backgrounds of materials I have a vague familiarity with.

The big Pompei exhibition at the Australian National Maritime Museum was a rich education for me. I have taught this topic to year 7 but this exhibition created a deep new understanding from the brief eight minute recreation of the 24 hours that destroyed Pompei. The curators have woven a story of the historical context, the aftermath and the significance. The details, the objects and layout tell a fascinating story and I was enriched by the visit.

See some of the pics below.

History of the world in 100 Objects @ National Museum of Australia

I finally got to see these objects in a room close enough to touch them. I heard these wonderful 10 minute podcasts off the BBC website over a decade age. There were pictures and text on the website and the choices and range of the objects were extraordinary.

I loved it then and to have them bring 100 objects of such historical significance all the way to Canberra filled me with a sense of awe.

The objects cover rock axes through to modern technology. The curators have drawn items from every continent, lots of different historical epochs and have woven in some remarkable historical anomalies. The striking thing about the exhibition for me is how creative humans are across the ages. Lots of the functional items are turned into items of striking beauty with artistic decoration and craftsmanship.

I will put some pics but say no more as it is best to see this one.

Encounters from British Museum @ National Museum of Australia

Encounters is a collaboration between the British Museum andsome Australian Indigenous people. The objects were chosen by Australian indigenous people to tell their stories. It  is a truly delightful experience to walk through the space and have stories told about indigenous life via objects taken from Australia over the last two hundred and 30 years.

I wept over some of the object linked stories

Here are some pics

 

Ground Truthing – Artists and Archaeology @ ANU School of Art Foyer Gallery

Art gets an edge when given a focus. Here is a set of art works around a theme and they all relate well to it. The exhibits range from a great set of large multiple photograph works that create a panel to collections of rock and other archaeological fragments that are arranged to tell a story. The presence of the earth in most creations is altogether appropriate. There are about a dozen artists involved and the hang in the well lit foyer gallery is a delight.

ANU Gallery page for the exhibition

http://soa.anu.edu.au/event/ground-truthing

Pics and gallery sheet below