Previous exhibitions 2005
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17 December 2005 – 30 April 2006
War: The prints of Otto Dix showcases Otto Dix’s war portfolio Der Krieg of 1924, a collection of 51 etchings with aquatint which is regarded as one of the great masterpieces of the twentieth century. Consciously modelled on Goya’s equally famous and equally devastating Los Desastres de la Guerra [The disasters of war], the portfolio captures Dix’s horror of, and fascination with, the experience of war.
Otto Dix Night-time encounter with a madman (detail) 1924 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra The Poynton Bequest 2003 © Jan Nelson
8 October 2005 – 12 March 2006
After generations of colonial rule, the free nation of Papua New Guinea was established in 1975. This exhibition celebrates 30 years of independence. Stories and images, both traditional and imaginary, are recorded in pen, pencil, woodcuts and screenprints – all new forms of expression to artists from the region. These prints and drawings, produced in the years around independence, show three ways in which Papua Nuginian artists responded to their contemporary world.
Timothy Akis not titled (bird) (detail) 1974 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Ulli and Georgina Beier Collection
Against the grain:
The woodcuts of Helen Frankenthaler
26 November 2005 – 5 February 2006
This exhibition investigates the creative innovation and technical experimentation that lies behind the production of some of the 20th century's greatest achievements in woodcut.
Frankenthaler was a key figure in the New York art scene during the 1950s. She was a revolutionary artist who made a significant contribution to an artistic territory dominated by giants like Jackson Pollock and Willem De Kooning. Although painting was Frankenthaler’s primary artistic passion, an obsession to push her creative limits led her to turn her attention to print media.
Helen Frankenthaler Tales of Genji III from the the Tales of Genji series 1998 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Purchased with the assistance of the Orde Poynton Fund 2002
Transformations:
The language of craft
11 November 2005 – 29 January 2006
Transformations reveals the skill and imagination of the contemporary craft practitioner in transforming materials from the everyday to the extraordinary, shown through the articulation of materials and structure, the passionate expression of the languages of abstraction and ornamentation, narrative and design.
Jun Kaneko Untitled triangle Dango 2004 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Acquired with funds donated by Raphy Star
Moist:
Australian watercolours
27 August – 7 December 2005
Moist is a rare glimpse into the National Gallery of Australia’s extraordinary collection of Australian watercolours. While the title refers to the liquid nature of watercolour, the word ‘moist’ elicits images of an atmospheric, physical or emotional state of being.
This exhibition will bring together a diversity of over 90 remarkable works, from the colonial period to the present: including the extraordinary still life watercolours of Neville Cayley and eX de Medici; the real and imaginary landscapes of Conrad Martens and Rosslynd Piggott; intimate portraits by Georgiana McCrae and Steve Cox; and the abstract compositions of Gunter Christmann and Yvonne Audette.
Noel McKenna The park ride (detail) 1989 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Purchased 1989
29 July – 6 November 2005
Bill Viola: The Passions, is a mesmerising exhibition of recent video works by the internationally-renowned American artist Bill Viola. The Passions 2000–02 is a series of twelve works in which Viola examines the manifestations of emotions, through silence, extreme slow-motion, and psychologically-gripping depictions of the faces and bodies of his performers. The exhibition also includes Five angels for the Millennium 2001.
This exhibition has been organised by the
J Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Bill
Viola Ascending Angel
from Five Angels for the Millennium (detail) 2001
collection of the artist, © Bill
Viola, photo: Kira Perov
The National Sculpture Prize and Exhibition 2005
15 July – 9 October 2005
The National Sculpture Prize and Exhibition is a partnership between the National Gallery of Australia and Macquarie Bank to support and promote Australian sculpture and to recognise outstanding works.
It is one of the most generous prizes for contemporary art in Australia, with a non-acquisitive prize of $50,000 awarded to the winning artist.
Patrick Hill Stack 2005 collection of the artist photo: Peter Whyte
Stage fright:
The art of theatre
3 March – 12 June 2006
Stage fright showcases works on paper and costumes from the National Gallery of Australia’s collection of Australian Theatre Arts. Stage fright will lead young children and their families on a voyage of discovery through mythology, fairytales, visionary worlds and fantasy characters through designs destined for the ballet, opera and the theatre stage.
Loudon Sainthill Costume design for an attendant from The
Man Who Loved Redheads c 1954 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Purchased 1973
Margaret Michaelis
Love, loss and photography
7 May – 14 August 2005
This is an exhibition that has at its heart a story about the life and work of Margaret Michaelis and some of the momentous events of the 20th-century. Michaelis's professional career in Vienna, Berlin and Barcelona was shaped by the rise of fascism and the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War. In 1939 Michaelis fled from Europe and settled in Sydney where she excelled in the areas of portraiture and dance photography.
Guest curator Helen Ennis is a Senior Lecturer at the Australian National University, School of Art.
Margaret Michaelis Encounter (Shona Dunlop and Hilary Napier in 'Seastudy')
c 1947 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Gift of the estate of Margaret Michaelis-Sachs 1986
An artist abroad:
The prints of James McNeill Whistler
25 March – 10 July 2005
James McNeill Whistler was a key figure in the European art world of the 19th century. Influenced by the French Realists, the Dutch, Venetian and Japanese masters Whistler's prints are sublime visions of people and the places they inhabit.
The exhibition consists of 100 works from the National Gallery of Australia's rich Whistler print collection.
James McNeill Whistler Elinor Leyland 1873 Nattional Gallery of Australia, Canberra Purchased 1978
![Craig Walsh, David Thomasson, Steven Thomasson [GODLAB] Keith [RP11-345A12] 2003 collection of the artists](IMAGES/futureplay.jpg)
futurePlay
from the House of Tomorrow
19 March – 29 May 2005
futurePlay transforms the Children’s Gallery into an ultramodern playroom of the future.
Discover an electronic world of digital animations and interactive artwork. Take a journey through 3d virtual landscapes with a high-tech rocking-horse, boogie on a carpet that dances with you and make friends with Keith [rp11-345a12] the digital baby. futurePlay from Experimenta's House of Tomorrow exhibition.
Craig Walsh, David Thomasson, Steven Thomasson [GODLAB] Keith [RP11-345A12] 2003 collection of the artists
James Gleeson
Beyond the screen of sight
A National Gallery of Victoria
Touring Exhibition
18 March – 13 June 2005
James Gleeson is one of Australia's most important artists. For more than six decades his work has explored the realms and possibilities of the Surrealist creed and sought to show that there exists, beyond the obvious and everyday, an alternative reality experienced through dreams, hallucinations, and differing mental states.
James Gleeson: beyond the screen of sight includes 80 paintings and works on paper, many of which have not been seen since their initial exhibition.
James Gleeson The attitude of lightning towards a lady mountain 1939 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Purchased with the assistance of James Agapitos OAM and Ray Wilson OAM, 2007 © James Gleeson
Grace Cossington Smith:
a retrospective exhibition
4 March 2005 – 13 June 2005
Grace Cossington Smith is widely considered to be one of Australia’s most significant artists. She played a vital role in the development of modernism in Australia.
This retrospective exhibition traces Grace Cossington Smith’s artistic development through paintings and drawings as well as through her many sketchbooks to reveal an artist of considerable depth, insight and spirituality.
Grace Cossington Smith Eastern Road, Turramurra c 1926 National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Bequest of Mervyn Horton, 1984