The 7th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art APT7 @ GoMA

The 7th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art APT7 @ GoMA

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Posted 2013-01-01 by Jacqui Schneiderfollow

Sat 08 Dec 2012 - Sun 14 Apr 2013

The 7th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT7) @ GoMA

Well, I don't know how they do it, but they have done it again. I'm talking about the amazing curatorial feat that is the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT), the 7th one and marking 20 years of this flagship exhibition of the Art Gallery of QLD. APT7 at QAGoMA is fresh, familiar, inspired and inspiring, often colourful, and a visual feast while still commenting, often subtly and sometimes less so, with a spiritual and cultural slant, like only art can.



What a great way to spend a couple of hours browsing in that wonderful (nicely air-conditioned!) space that is the GoMA building on the river's edge, checking out a selection of art from the Asia Pacific region and seeing what the artists in various communities come up with to reflect on their environment and their experience of life.



It's fascinating to delve into the artists' visual representations and interpretations of their culture from around the whole region, which is, of course "our" region.



An Asia Pacific Triennial of contemporary art grounds firmly us in our region, inclusive of places such as the Tiwi Islands that, although small in size and population, have a strong and distinct artistic and cultural heritage and a lot to offer in this respect.



Papua New Guinea and the Pacific islands generally are strongly represented this time, which I enjoyed very much. There are some really impressive woven sculptures, placed with stunning effect in the central exhibition area.





And one of the largest displays is a huge section of a construction in the traditional style, but painted on a contemporary surface.



I laughed at the way the introduced Christianity with its iconic Madonna is incorporated into traditional sculptures by a group of artists from the Tolai people in PNG, with the Madonna sitting right alongside her indigenous counterparts and given equal status. It's like they are saying, OK, we've always got room for one more religious figure, but we are still keeping our old ones!



And our own local indigenous artists are well represented, with beautiful interpretations of traditional objects by Lorraine Connelly-Northey and Shirley Macnamara.




I loved Tiffany Chung's flight of the animals, a surge of glass creatures – all handmade by a local glassblower – ranging from giraffes and elephants to leopards and small mammals, all hurrying in one direction. It evoked a sense of racing away from something menacing, while being in itself a thing of great beauty and delicacy.



And I was moved by Japanese artist Tomoko Kashiki's paintings, that to me were instantly recognisable as Japanese with a strong traditional influence, but totally contemporary in subject matter.



There is so much more to take in and delight in, and I for one won't be confining myself to one visit. APT is on until 14 April.

#exhibitions
#december
#art
#south_brisbane
#january
#february
#march
#april
!date 08/12/2012 -- 14/04/2013
%wnbrisbane
218400 - 2023-06-16 07:43:37

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