Free Exhibitions at NGV Australia, The Ian Potter Centre, Fed Square

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Federation Square is a spectacular piece of architecture and an aesthetically pleasing public space, but what is housed inside at the Ian Potter Centre with its various exhibitions is even more inspiring. NGV Australia has a bunch of free exhibitions on and all of them are well worth a visit.

StArt Up: Top Arts 2015, NGV Studio, Ground Level. Until 28th June.

On the Ground Level, there is a selection of top VCE arts students' works, which not only offer outstanding pieces, but also showcases the talents of young upcoming artists, presenting a glimpse of developments in the art world that we can expect to see in the future.


John Wolseley: Heartlands and Headwaters, Level 2. Until 20th September.

This awe-inspiring display of John Wolseley's works celebrates the wetlands of Australia, exploring how water shapes and defines the land, and how we as human beings live and move within landscape, documented in a series of strikingly beautiful watercolours, drawings, and collages on paper.

The uniqueness of his work reflects and accentuates the rarity and significance of sites of natural water forms that includes flood plains, deltas, swamps, rivers, creeks, and alpine lakes. In doing so, the artist is simultaneously educating his audience of the fragility and importance of these places, while highlighting some of the environmental issues this vulnerability may pose. This is easily one of the most exciting works of contemporary art seen in Australia today.



Adjacent to the Wolseley exhibition is The Joseph Brown Collection, also on Level 2, where some of Australia's most prolific artists' works reside, such as Fred Williams, John Brack, Brett Whiteley, John Olsen, and Jeffrey Smart.

The Kaleidoscopic Turn: NGV Collection, Level 3. Until 23rd August.

The Kaleidoscopic Turn exhibits artists working with colour, light, sound, movement, and space, offering a scope of experiences that will excite and challenge the senses. This exhibition explores innovative ideas bound to test your optical, kinetic, aural, and spatial perspective, a powerful reminder of the limitations and/or possibilities associated with your perceptions.



Indigenous Art: Moving Backwards into the Future, Level 3. Until 16th August.

This diverse and fascinating exhibition showcases works old and new, celebrating the rich diversity of one of the oldest cultures in the world. It is distributed over five rooms, including a contemporary art space housing paintings, drawings, photography, and installations that explore notions of the meaning of Aboriginality in the urban space.

Follow the Flag: Australian Artists and War 1914–1945, Level 3. Until 16th August.

This exhibition consists of paintings, photographs, and sculpture by artists expressing their experience of war between 1914 and 1945 and reflects a diverse range of attitudes in response to war.

I would suggest a couple of visits to get your arts fix for this enormous contemporary space. Top of the list is John Wolseley, Heartlands and Headwaters, and the Indigenous exhibition, Moving Backwards into the Future. Get ready to be inspired.

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