non-fictionA collection of essays on Indigenous art in mainstream Australia by international Indigenous and non-Indigenous academics, arts administrators and practising artists. fiona foley, fiona nicoll, regina ganter, ole maiava, louise martin-chew, anna haebich, franca tamisari, aboriginal art, indigenous architecture

Gareth SAMSOM (19 November 1939- ) Born Melbourne Sansom describes a desire to constantly surprise and challenge himself as an artist. He had his first exhibition in 1959. His paintings of the 1960s were characterised by a distorted use of line, shape and colour and were influenced by abstract expressionism, Francis Bacon and Sidney Nolan. Over time, his work has also drawn on punk, dada, Basquiat, T.S. Eliot, urban graffiti, classical Greek philosophy and art theory across a variety of media ranging from drawing, printmaking and collage to photomontage and photography. Sansom lectured in Art at the Ballarat Teachers' college, and was appointed Head of Painting at the Victorian College of the Arts from 1977-1985, and Dean School of Art at the Victorian College of the Arts from 1986-1991. He was artist-in-residence at the University of Melbourne in 1985, which was when he resumed his full-time painting practice with a series of large works on canvas. The Federation University Art Collection features over 1000 works and was listed as a 'Ballarat Treasure' in 2007.'Looking for God in Abstract Art 2' is a play on the debate over the respective virtues of abstraction and figuration that has preoccupied artists and critics for more than a century. Sanson has always walked a wobbly line between the two, adroitly avoiding falling headlong into either camp. It is also a gentle dig at the pretensions to higher spiritual meaning in abstract art. In the centre are two photographs, one of rubber masks and the other of the artist in a lurid fright wig and mask and using a spray can like a young tagger. These images, where the artist wears a mask and teeters on bright red platforms, are wonderfully ludicrous send-ups of the 'fine art' of painting. (Geoff Wallis from 'Gareth Sansom: Alternative Person", Art Gallery of Ballarat, 2012) This work was exhibited and published in the catalogue of the exhibition 'Gareth Sansom: Alternative Person' at the Art Gallery of Ballarat in 2012 item. art, artwork, gareth sansom, sansom, mixed media, oils, enamel, photo-collage

Publication accompanying the project, The f Word: Contemporary feminist art in Australia. Curated by Caroline Phillips, this project included multiple components: A Dinner Party: Setting the table; the Regional Feminist Art Forum, the Technopia Tours Feminist Art Bus, and two exhibitions.feminism, feminist art, melbourne, the dinner party, australia, judy chicago, west space, latrobe visual art institute, bendigo, gippsland art gallery, sale, victoria, ararat regional art gallery, ararat, technopia tours, kim donaldson, catherine bell, penny byrne, filomena coppola, kate just, jill orr, clare rae, elvis richardson, kate beynon, karen buczynski-lee, destiny deacon, laurene dietrich, eliza-jane gilchrist, janice gobey, georgia macguire, robyn massey, caroline phillips, louise saxton, inez de vega, lyndal walker, justine makdessi, the great petition, natalie thomas, laura castagnini, lyndal jones, vicki kinai, dot ket, virginia fraser, juliette peers, louise burchill, carolyn barnes, melbourne social equity institute, ebony gulliver, kalinda vary, kate robertson, stephanie alexander, kate macneill, victoria duckett, hana assafiri, victoria bennett, anne marsh, catherine deveny, danni zuvela, jon dale, marcia jane, catherine evans

The Guirguis New Art Prize (GNAP) is a biennial national acquisitive $20,000 contemporary art prize. It is for Australia's contemporary artists with works that explore new ways of artistic expression, utilising existing mediums as well as new technologies. It was initiated and supported by local Ballarat surgeon Mr Mark Guirguis. The art prize is administered by the Federation University Australia (FedUni) and displayed at the Post Office Gallery in Ballarat. The prize was managed and curated by Shelley Hinton. .1) Large purple promotional banner made of maroon synthetic fabric printed with white lettering, hemmed on the long sides and 8 cm wide pockets on the ends. .2) Feather Flag in maroon shiny synthetic fabric printed with white lettering, hemmed and with a black 6.5 cm elastic pocket around the long side.Printed with GNAP, Guirguis New Art Prize and the date 11 April - 31 May 2015guirguis new art prize, mr mark guirguis, federation university australia, post office gallery exhibition, contemporary art, contemporary art prize, mark guirguis, shelley hinton, herbert werner frederick de nully

Booknon-fictionCatalogue accompanying exhibition at National Gallery of Australia in 2001 with two essays interweaving Hester's life and art, 1920-1960.contemporary art society, angry penguins, painting, watercolour, gouache

Michael Gromm completed a Bachelor of Arts (Fine Arts) at the University of Ballarat (now Federation University) in 2002. He has been a finalist in the Scope Galleries Art Prize (2012); The Metro Gallery Art Prize (2010); The Fletcher Jones Contemporary Art Prize (2008), and was announced the winner of the David Pratt Drawing Award in 2001. This item is part of the Federation University Art Collection. The Art Collection features over 2000 works and was listed as a 'Ballarat Treasure' in 2007.art, artwork, michael gromm, seascape, alumni, oil on canvas, oil, david pratt drawing award, fletcher jones contemporary art prize, metro gallery art prize, scope galleries art prize

Nawurapu Wunungmurra is the eldest son of the late Yaggarriny Wunungmurra, the first Aboriginal artist to have his copyright recognised in an Australian court. From an early age he was trained by his father and assisted him with this painting. Later, as his own spiritual authority increased, he painted in his own right. This pole depicts the sea at Garraparra, a coastal headland and bay area within Mungurru, or Blue Mud Bay. Garraparra has been rendered by the wavy design for Yirritja (deep saltwater) that has many states and connects with the sacred waters coming from the land estates by currents and tidal flow. Garraparra marks the spot of a sacred burial area for the Dhalwangu clan to which Wunungmurra belongs. Sacred songs and dance narrate the heroic adventures of two ancestral hunters who left the shores of Garraparra hunting for turtle. On their journey they passed sacred places and ancestral totems before they came to grief when their canoe capsized. The hunters’ bodies washed back to the shores of Garraparra with the currents and the tides, as the Wangupini, cloud rising from the north, followed with its rain and wind. In the songs, the terns (Gitkit) reel in the breeze around these statuesque clouds on the horizon, and this stylised rendition of clouds seen at the top of this work is the latest motif in Wunungmurra’s ouvre.Ceremonial hollow log poles Arnhem Land, Northern Territory The people of Central and Eastern Arnhem Land refer to themselves collectively as Yolngu, meaning human beings. The Yolngu traditionally use logs naturally hollowed out by termites in a funerary and ceremonial functions, principally as an ossuary. In an Australian contemporary art context however hollow log sculptures are purely memorial in function and made explicitly for public display. In Arnhem Land hollow logs are known as larrakitj; hollow logs known by other names are used in burial practices by a number of Aboriginal peoples in the north of Australia. The logs can also represent the deceased person, as the designs applied are the same as those painted on the body during the burial rites. All Yolngu clans belong to a moiety, one of two complementary halves of society: Dhuwa and Yirritja. All such affiliations play a part in Aboriginal artists' inherited right to paint an established set of designs belonging to their social group; this inheritance is, in fact, the artist's copyright over imagery.stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, painting, nawurapu wunungmurra, garraparra, coastal, yirritja, saltwater, sacred burial, cultural heritage, cultural identity

Gunybi Ganambarr has built a reputation for his innovative techniques, incising and shaping barks and adding materials to traditional art forms. He attributes his confidence in using new materials to his twelve year stint as a part of a building team in remote homelands. Ganambarr primarily lives in his mother’s community at Gangan, which lies north-west of Blue Mud Bay in eastern Arnhem Land, Northern Territory. Ganambarr has absorbed the minutiae and spirituality of place; his paintings can be read as meditations on the specific tracts of land for which he is entitled to speak; in this case, a sacred expanse of water behind the Gangan outstation where this work was produced, referred to as Gulutji. Ganambarr’s designs recount the ancestral formation of the land, the beings that reside within its borders and
the seasonal events that nourish its ecosystem. His work exemplifies the confidence and cultural assertion of a new, experimental Yolngu art, while remaining firmly influenced by elders and senior artists. Ceremonial hollow log poles Arnhem Land, Northern Territory The people of Central and Eastern Arnhem Land refer to themselves collectively as Yolngu, meaning human beings. The Yolngu traditionally use logs naturally hollowed out by termites in a funerary and ceremonial functions, principally as an ossuary. In an Australian contemporary art context however hollow log sculptures are purely memorial in function and made explicitly for public display. In Arnhem Land hollow logs are known as larrakitj; hollow logs known by other names are used in burial practices by a number of Aboriginal peoples in the north of Australia. The logs can also represent the deceased person, as the designs applied are the same as those painted on the body during the burial rites. All Yolngu clans belong to a moiety, one of two complementary halves of society: Dhuwa and Yirritja. All such affiliations play a part in Aboriginal artists' inherited right to paint an established set of designs belonging to their social group; this inheritance is, in fact, the artist's copyright over imagery. stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, painting, gunybi ganambarr, natural environment, cultural heritage, cultural identity, cultural knowledge, landscape

Malaluba Gumana dedicates most of her artworks to portraying her mother Marratj Gurruwiwi’s Gälpu clan designs of dhatam (waterlilly), djari (rainbow), djaykun (filesnake) and wititj (olive python or rainbow serpent). Gumana demonstrates a very fine ‘marwat’, a cross hatching technique that utilises a fine brush of human hair, applied to bark and memorial poles. The title 'Garrimala' refers to a billabong close to Malaluba’s homeland of Gängan. Dominating this work are realistic representations of dhatam, the waterlily plant. The Gälpu clan miny’tji – the sacred clan design behind the lillies – represents djari (rainbows) and the power of the lightning within them. It also refers to the force of the storm created by the python Wititj, living amongst the waterlilies causing ripples and rainbows on the surface of the water. The dynamic diagonal lines symbolise trees that have been knocked down as Wititj moves from place to place. Ceremonial hollow log poles Arnhem Land, Northern Territory The people of Central and Eastern Arnhem Land refer to themselves collectively as Yolngu, meaning human beings. The Yolngu traditionally use logs naturally hollowed out by termites in a funerary and ceremonial functions, principally as an ossuary. In an Australian contemporary art context however hollow log sculptures are purely memorial in function and made explicitly for public display. In Arnhem Land hollow logs are known as larrakitj; hollow logs known by other names are used in burial practices by a number of Aboriginal peoples in the north of Australia. The logs can also represent the deceased person, as the designs applied are the same as those painted on the body during the burial rites. All Yolngu clans belong to a moiety, one of two complementary halves of society: Dhuwa and Yirritja. All such affiliations play a part in Aboriginal artists' inherited right to paint an established set of designs belonging to their social group; this inheritance is, in fact, the artist's copyright over imagery. stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, painting, malaluba gumana, waterlily, rainbow, filesnake, olive python, rainbow serpent, natural environment, cultural heritage

Booknon-fictionWritten by two muralists and a sociologists the book documents the community based mural movement in the late 60s and early 70s in Canada and the USA.political art, revolutionary art, community arts, large scale works

This artwork is part of 69Fifteen, the book published in 2013 celebrating 69 Smith Street Gallery’s 15th year in operation as an artist-run space.Acrylic painting. Abstract image comprising twelve canvases. Colour scheme includes yellow, brown, aqua and green.julie harmsworth, 69 smith street gallery, artist-run initiative, artist-run space, melbourne art galleries, painting, abstract art, abstract painting, www.incarastudio.com.au

Viola Annie McVicars (1911–1990) was born in Korumburra on 29 April 1911. At the age of 21, she married William John Ayling (1909–1995). After their marriage in 1932, they moved to Kew, initially to 81 Tennyson Street, and later to 180 Pakington Street. A professional tailoress, Viola Ayling was also a talented amateur potter, creating her ceramics at her home in Pakington Street, where she had an internal studio and a handmade, wood-fired brick kiln in her backyard. Following her death in 1990, her studio pottery passed to her daughter, and following the daughter’s death, to her granddaughter. This piece of glazed earthenware is part of a collection of 15 functional and decorative ceramic items donated by Viola’s granddaughter to the collection in 2024.A handmade, abstract figurative sculpture, expertly potted and glazed. The style is representative of Australian ceramic design of the period, particularly that employed by Klytie Pate.Hand modelled ceramic sculpture of a Madonna and Child figural group. The abstract figures are fully covered in an olive green overglaze, apart from the base which is overglazed in cream. The base has an incised spiral beneath the glaze, which was used to decorate the hidden surfaces of a number of pieces, The base is signed with the artist's name around the edge.Signature to base: "V. Ayling"ceramics, pakington street -- kew (vic.), sculptures, abstract art, madonnas and child, viola annie mcvicars, viola annie ayling

An unframed square acrylic-on-canvas painting in tones of green and white forming an abstract botanical pattern that radiates out from the centre. A renowned Anmatyerre artist from Utopia, Northern Territory, Petyarre’s work carries more than pigment—it holds a lineage of care. These sweeping, rhythmic brushstrokes represent Kurrajong leaves and other medicinal plants traditionally gathered and prepared by women healers. Passed from grandmother to granddaughter, these practices are a form of medicine beyond the clinical. They speak of country, ceremony, and community. They evoke breath, movement, and the cyclical nature of wellbeing. Hand painted on reverse. "JEANNIE PETYARRE 60X60" Handwritten on reverse. "(Sister of Gloria Petyarre) / "Medicine Leaves" 2005. / Presented to ANZCA by Prof. Michael Cousins 16/6/06"oil paint, acrylic paint, floral, floral design, botanical design, abstract art, indigenous artists, first nations artists, australian artists, australian art

The Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA) began as a faculty at the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS). Separation was achieved in 1992, when the faculty became a college in its own right. The relationship between ANZCA and RACS has been strong ever since, and on opening the new building at the rear of the property in 2002, RACS gifted this painting to ANZCA.Mixed media abstract on square canvas. The painting is an orange, grey, green and white background, with an abstracted landscape in black to the centre.Handwritten in blue permanent marker on reverse: -RETURN TO FOREVER- / T MCNAMARAHandwritten on white sticker adhered to frame: TREVOR MCNAMARA / "RETURN TO FOREVER" / 160 X 160 / MIXED MEDIA / W: 3862 BTY ZAWmixed media, abstract art, art

art, women artists, sculpture, contemporary art, exhibition, women’s art register, textiles, julia boros, katve-kaisa kontturi, anna sandy, bonita ely, richmond, australian artistsart, women artists, sculpture, contemporary art, exhibition, women’s art register, textiles, julia boros, katve-kaisa kontturi, anna sandy, bonita ely, richmond, australian artists

non-fictionA history of the authors life as an artist, teacher, and political activist in Australia.trade unions, social realism, communist party of australia, peace art, australia council, community arts, art and working life, international co-operation art award, cpa, political cartoons, cabramatta and districts art society, noel counihan, contemporary art society of victoria

Having refined his technique of painting on the reverse side of glass, David Jolly has achieved critical acclaim as an articulate drawer and painter. His work ruminates on the role of the artist as witness and reporter. He pairs rich colour and extraordinary detail with the glossy seductiveness of the glass surface. It presents a compelling encounter between the luminous dimensionality of glass and the textureless, mirror-like surfaces of screen culture. The series Artist’s Proof #1 illustrates before and after scenes of the Formula 1 Grand Prix at Albert Park Lake. Characteristic of Jolly, the works focus not on the spectacle of the race but the casual imagery of its inconsequential incidents, scenes and moments. Props III and Lakehouse exemplify of this approach. While able to be read as singularly abstract compositions, Meatball and Surface are in fact transcriptions of motor racing flags that signal hazards or the need for an immediate pit-stop.Against a big clouded blue sky and a backdrop of trees and a field (perhaps a sports field), the foreground shows stacks of tyres, metal poles, tall metal barricades, square storage bins and pipes. Titled, signed and dated by the artist: top left, back, in blue ink.stonnington contemporary art collection, painting, david jolly, albert park lake, formula 1, grand prix, motor racing

Having refined his technique of painting on the reverse side of glass, David Jolly has achieved critical acclaim as an articulate drawer and painter. His work ruminates on the role of the artist as witness and reporter. He pairs rich colour and extraordinary detail with the glossy seductiveness of the glass surface. It presents a compelling encounter between the luminous dimensionality of glass and the textureless, mirror-like surfaces of screen culture. The series Artist’s Proof #1 illustrates before and after scenes of the Formula 1 Grand Prix at Albert Park Lake. Characteristic of Jolly, the works focus not on the spectacle of the race but the casual imagery of its inconsequential incidents, scenes and moments. Props III and Lakehouse exemplify of this approach. While able to be read as singularly abstract compositions, Meatball and Surface are in fact transcriptions of motor racing flags that signal hazards or the need for an immediate pit-stop. stonnington contemporary art collection, painting, david jolly, albert park lake, formula 1, grand prix, motor racing

Having refined his technique of painting on the reverse side of glass, David Jolly has achieved critical acclaim as an articulate drawer and painter. His work ruminates on the role of the artist as witness and reporter. He pairs rich colour and extraordinary detail with the glossy seductiveness of the glass surface. It presents a compelling encounter between the luminous dimensionality of glass and the textureless, mirror-like surfaces of screen culture. The series Artist’s Proof #1 illustrates before and after scenes of the Formula 1 Grand Prix at Albert Park Lake. Characteristic of Jolly, the works focus not on the spectacle of the race but the casual imagery of its inconsequential incidents, scenes and moments. Props III and Lakehouse exemplify of this approach. While able to be read as singularly abstract compositions, Meatball and Surface are in fact transcriptions of motor racing flags that signal hazards or the need for an immediate pit-stop.stonnington contemporary art collection, painting, david jolly, albert park lake, formula 1, grand prix, motor racing

Having refined his technique of painting on the reverse side of glass, David Jolly has achieved critical acclaim as an articulate drawer and painter. His work ruminates on the role of the artist as witness and reporter. He pairs rich colour and extraordinary detail with the glossy seductiveness of the glass surface. It presents a compelling encounter between the luminous dimensionality of glass and the textureless, mirror-like surfaces of screen culture. The series Artist’s Proof #1 illustrates before and after scenes of the Formula 1 Grand Prix at Albert Park Lake. Characteristic of Jolly, the works focus not on the spectacle of the race but the casual imagery of its inconsequential incidents, scenes and moments. Props III and Lakehouse exemplify of this approach. While able to be read as singularly abstract compositions, Meatball and Surface are in fact transcriptions of motor racing flags that signal hazards or the need for an immediate pit-stop.stonnington contemporary art collection, painting, david jolly, albert park lake, formula 1, grand prix, motor racing

Maree Clarke is a multi-disciplinary artist from Mildura in northwest Victoria, living and working in Melbourne. Her continuing desire to affirm and reconnect with her cultural heritage makes her a pivotal figure in the reclamation of southeast Australian Aboriginal art practices, reviving elements of Aboriginal culture that were lost over the period of colonisation. The 'Men and Women in Mourning' series explores the traditional ceremonies of grief and mourning practices from Calrke's Country. It originates from her fascination with Kopi, a gypsum cap worn to express an individual’s mourning of a loved one or significant member of the clan. A Kopi can weigh up to 7kg and the length of time they are worn depends on the person’s closeness to the deceased. When the mourning period was over the Kopi would be placed on the person’s grave.stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, mourning ceremony, maree clarke, cultural heritage

Maree Clarke is a multi-disciplinary artist from Mildura in northwest Victoria, living and working in Melbourne. Her continuing desire to affirm and reconnect with her cultural heritage makes her a pivotal figure in the reclamation of southeast Australian Aboriginal art practices, reviving elements of Aboriginal culture that were lost over the period of colonisation. The 'Men and Women in Mourning' series explores the traditional ceremonies of grief and mourning practices from Calrke's Country. It originates from her fascination with Kopi, a gypsum cap worn to express an individual’s mourning of a loved one or significant member of the clan. A Kopi can weigh up to 7kg and the length of time they are worn depends on the person’s closeness to the deceased. When the mourning period was over the Kopi would be placed on the person’s grave.stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, mourning ceremony, maree clarke, cultural heritage

Maree Clarke is a multi-disciplinary artist from Mildura in northwest Victoria, living and working in Melbourne. Her continuing desire to affirm and reconnect with her cultural heritage makes her a pivotal figure in the reclamation of southeast Australian Aboriginal art practices, reviving elements of Aboriginal culture that were lost over the period of colonisation. The 'Men and Women in Mourning' series explores the traditional ceremonies of grief and mourning practices from Calrke's Country. It originates from her fascination with Kopi, a gypsum cap worn to express an individual’s mourning of a loved one or significant member of the clan. A Kopi can weigh up to 7kg and the length of time they are worn depends on the person’s closeness to the deceased. When the mourning period was over the Kopi would be placed on the person’s grave.stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, mourning ceremony, maree clarke, cultural heritage

Maree Clarke is a multi-disciplinary artist from Mildura in northwest Victoria, living and working in Melbourne. Her continuing desire to affirm and reconnect with her cultural heritage makes her a pivotal figure in the reclamation of southeast Australian Aboriginal art practices, reviving elements of Aboriginal culture that were lost over the period of colonisation. The 'Men and Women in Mourning' series explores the traditional ceremonies of grief and mourning practices from Calrke's Country. It originates from her fascination with Kopi, a gypsum cap worn to express an individual’s mourning of a loved one or significant member of the clan. A Kopi can weigh up to 7kg and the length of time they are worn depends on the person’s closeness to the deceased. When the mourning period was over the Kopi would be placed on the person’s grave. stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, mourning ceremony, maree clarke, cultural heritage

Daniel Boyd’s practice often investigates complex or contrasting forces, such as the primitive and the modern, this world and the next, and traditional techniques fused with contemporary methods. He completed a Bachelor of Arts at the Australian National University School of Art and in 2012 he was artist-in-residence at the Natural History Museum in London. There he reflected on the Museums collection’s historic images concerning the First Fleet’s arrival in Australia and their tendency to obscure the original identity of any indigenous subjects. It was during this residency he researched and made the Up In Smoke Tour series of work that concerns this omission and the lives of Indigenous Australians following the bleak realities of colonialism. Using archival resin glue and watercolour on photocopied images to recast and reimagine dot-paintings, Boyd masks attempts to identify the image or narrative of his works. He reinterprets Aboriginal and Australian-European history through recasting artworks and icons and altering the familiar interpretation of materials, here using Museum specimen boxes that previously contained the bones of Aboriginal people.stonnington contemporary art collection, first peoples, first nations, indigenous, aboriginal torres strait islander, cultural identity, daniel boyd, painting, assemblage