Kent Morris, Boonwurung (St-Kilda) – Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, 2017, archival print on rag paper, 120x30cm. Image courtesy the artist.
“We are here, we were always here but often we and our history are unseen. We have not vanished…” – KENT MORRIS
Unvanished is a series of digitally constructed photographs by contemporary Melbourne-based Barkindji artist Kent Morris. His photographs explore the relationship between contemporary Indigenous Australian identity and the modern built environment, highlighting the resilience of Indigenous people in the face of constantly changing circumstances and their ongoing connections to place amidst urban and suburban development.
Kent Morris will visit Kluge-Ruhe for a residency April 1- 28, 2019. He will present his work to UVA students in a variety of courses, in a gallery tour on Saturday, April 13 and in an artist talk on Thursday, April 18. He will also lead a public collage workshop.
Kent Morris is a Barkindji artist who lives in Melbourne. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Monash University and a post-graduate Diploma in Fine Art from Victorian College of the Arts. In 2013 he completed the Indigenous Arts Leadership Program at the National Gallery of Australia and his work was featured in the 2017 Tarnanthi Festival of Contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art. His work has been included in many exhibitions, such as the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award, and is in numerous major public collections, including the National Gallery of Victoria, Koorie Heritage Trust and the Parliament House Art Collection.
SOURCE: Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia