You’re invited
Celebrate with us
Anouska Phizacklea, MGA Director, and Natasha Bowness, Chair, MGA Committee of Management, warmly invite you to the opening of
The light fades but the gods remain
Bill Henson
and
A place in time: photographs by Viva Gibb
2–4pm Saturday 27 July 2019
2.30pm official launch with remarks by Bill Henson
All welcome to this free event
About the exhibitions
27 July – 29 September
Free Entry
The light fades but the gods remain
Bill Henson
The light fades but the gods remain is a major exhibition showcasing two key series by Bill Henson, one of Australia’s most eminent artists, exploring the suburb of Glen Waverley where he grew up.
In celebration of MGA’s 25th anniversary, Bill Henson was commissioned to revisit the suburb of his childhood and to produce a new body of work that reflects upon his earlier series Untitled 1985–86, known by many as ‘the suburban series’.
This ground-breaking commission offers an unparalleled insight into one of Australia’s most revered artists, as he explores the notion of home, intensifying the everyday to a point of dramatic revelation and romantic beauty.
Publication with Thames & Hudson
The exhibition will be accompanied by a comprehensive publication, The light fades but the gods remain, co-published with Thames & Hudson Australia.
Hardback and clothbound with a jacket featuring one of Bill Henson’s iconic photographs, this publication is more work of art than exhibition catalogue.
Including over 150 pages of Henson’s most personal works and texts relating to the two series, The light fades but the gods remain is a visual celebration and tribute to one of Australia’s most eminent artists.
The limited edition, presented in a slipcase, will be available from the MGA Shop for $150.
The publication launch date will be announced shortly.
A place in time:
photographs by Viva Gibb
Viva Gibb (1945–2017) was a Melbourne-based artist whose commitment to social documentary photography saw her create a unique body of work that is both personal and political.
A place in time: photographs by Viva Gibb is the first public gallery showing of her work in over 30 years. The photographs are drawn from a large body of her work that was recently acquired into MGA’s collection, generously donated by the artist’s estate.
The photographs included in this exhibition were taken in the artist’s neighbourhood, in West and North Melbourne during the 1970s and 1980s. Living, working and raising two children in West Melbourne, Gibb immersed herself in her local community, observing and documenting the people around her. Gibb created warm and sympathetic portraits of children, migrants, workers and elderly citizens and also documented sub-cultures, religious rituals and street events. Her informal and intimate compositions celebrate the everyday and reveal her progressive and compassionate approach to humanity.
Politically engaged and sensitively produced, these works provide small windows into the lives of ordinary people, which are today historically and culturally significant social documentations of a particular place in time.
Selected upcoming special events
Bill Henson Q&A for students and teachers
Tuesday 30 July
4.30–6pm
Presented by Friends of MGA Inc.
Held in the gallery space, surrounded by the newly commissioned works, Bill Henson will conduct a Q&A session exclusively for students and teachers at MGA.
Tickets: $15 per person
*Student card (Secondary/Tertiary) must be presented at the door on request. Guardians are also welcome to attend with ticket purchase.
Bill Henson in conversation with John McDonald
Thursday 1 August
6.45–8pm
Join Bill Henson in conversation with John McDonald, art critic for the Sydney Morning Herald, as they tease out the impact of place, landscape and memory on Henson’s practice.
Tickets:
$30 Friends of MGA members
$35 non-members
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Friends of MGA exclusive event
Thursday 8 August
6.30–8.30pm
Join MGA Senior Curator Pippa Milne for an exclusive ‘Behind the scenes’ tour of The light fades but the gods remain.
This event is strictly for Friends of MGA members. Members please check your email for your personal invitation.
Curatorial snapshot
A place in time: photographs of Viva Gibb
Tuesday 20 August
11–11.30am
Join MGA Curator Stella Loftus-Hills and Curatorial Intern Melinda Haldane for a walk through of the first public showing of the work of Viva Gibb in over 30 years.
Feature image captions:
1. Bill HENSON
Untitled 6 (detail) 2018–19
from the series Untitled 2018–19
Monash Gallery of Art, City of Monash Collection MGA 2019.19
courtesy of the artist, Tolarno Galleries (Melbourne) and Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery (Sydney)
2. Viva GIBB
Signora at her house in Hawke Street, West Melbourne 1983
Monash Gallery of Art, City of Monash Collection MGA 2019.68
donated by Sybil Gibb and Rupert Duffy in memory of Viva Gibb 2019
courtesy of the Estate of Viva Gibb
3. Bill HENSON
Untitled 43 1985–86
from the series Untitled 1985–86
Monash Gallery of Art, City of Monash Collection MGA 2016.102
courtesy of the artist, Tolarno Galleries (Melbourne) and Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery (Sydney)
4. Bill HENSON
Untitled 72 1985–86
from the series Untitled 1985–86
Monash Gallery of Art, City of Monash Collection MGA 2016.102
courtesy of the artist, Tolarno Galleries (Melbourne) and Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery (Sydney)
5. Bill HENSON
Untitled 138 1985–86
from the series Untitled 1985–86
Monash Gallery of Art, City of Monash Collection MGA 2016.102
courtesy of the artist, Tolarno Galleries (Melbourne) and Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery (Sydney)
6. Viva GIBB
Stephan Finckle and Jessie Towsey at 64 Capel Street 1977
Monash Gallery of Art, City of Monash Collection
donated by Sybil Gibb and Rupert Duffy in memory of Viva Gibb 2019 MGA 2019.35
courtesy of the Estate of Viva Gibb
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