Mervyn Bishop, Prime Minister Gough Whitlam pours soil
into the hands of traditional land owner Vincent Lingiari, NT,
1975 Colour Lambda print, 120 x 120 cm (framed)
© Courtesy the artist and Josef Lebovic Gallery, Sydney
Making Change: Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Australia–China Diplomatic Relations
Making change is an exhibition of change-making film, photograph and video based art marking the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Australia. Former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam realized 40 years ago that Australia needed to make closer links with its geographic neighbor, Asia, as well as its original inhabitants, the Aboriginal people. This is the key to the development of social and culture of Australia and to the exhibition.
This exhibition surveys recent work by 24 artists who are change-makers and leaders of their fields. They demonstrate a broader view of multicultural and outward-looking society than restricting to local art through innovative methods such as media, documentary, animation and installation. Many of their work have been in the Asia-Pacific Triennial, Biennale of Sydney, as well as in international biennales, art and film festivals. Artists presented in this exhibition include: Mervyn Bishop, Ricky Maynard, Nici Cumpston, Tracy Moffatt, Jason Wing, Richard Bell, Bindi Cole, Gordon Hookey, Fiona Foley, Judy Watson, etc.
First presented from November to December 2012 at NAMOC, China, the exhibition attracted great interests of audience and was an enormous success. This time in Sydney, holding the exhibition at COFA allows Australian audience the chance to review the work of many famous contemporary Australian artists.
The exhibition was a finalist in the 2013 federal government Australian Arts in Asia Awards. In addition to the exhibition, a bi-lingual catalogue and a series of artist and curator talks are also available.
Source: http://www.acp.org.au/international/