2007-08 Report

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Zhu Weibing
China b.1971
Ji Wenyu
China b.1959
People holding flowers2007
Acrylic paint on resin; velour, steel
wire, dacron, lodestone and cotton
400 pieces: 102 x 17 x 11cm (each)
(installed dimensions variable)
The Kenneth and Yasuko Myer
Collection of Contemporary Asian Art.
Purchased 2008 with funds from
Michael Simcha Baevski through the
Queensland Art Gallery Foundation
Image courtesy: ShangART Gallery
COLLECTION QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY ANNUAL REPORT 2007–08 19
The international photography collection was augmented
by three extraordinary prints by Mario Giacomelli, Lo non
ho mani che mi accarezzino il volto (There are no hands
to caress my face) (Pretini 70/71/72)1961–63, printed
c.1980. Giacomelli looked to his own community and
everyday life as subjects for his work. In 1960 he was
commissioned by the Catholic Church to document the
lives of young priests, whom he often photographed at
leisure. His pretinior little priests are striking, poetic
images and constitute some of his most celebrated work.
CINEMA AND THE MOVING IMAGE
During the year several moving-image works from
significant international filmmakers were acquired.
To coincide with the 'Andy Warhol' exhibition, 'Visions of
Warhol', a collection of short films by pioneering
avant-garde filmmakers and close friends of the artist,
was acquired. Each film presents an intimate and
personal view of different aspects of Warhol's life and
work. The anthology includes Jonas Mekas's Scenes from
the Life of Andy Warhol1963–90, and footage from the
first public performance of the Velvet Underground at
Delmonico's Hotel, New York, on 13 January 1966.
DISPLAYING THE COLLECTION (QAG)
Australian Galleries
Fairweather Room
Following the first themed display in the Gallery's
dedicated space for this important Queensland-based
artist, a fresh display was mounted. This drew on the
Gallery's excellent holdings of works by Ian Fairweather,
but also included new acquisitions of photographs of the
artist by Robert Walker from the mid 1960s.
Queensland Artists’ Gallery
'Art in Queensland 1850s to 1930s', on display from
October 2007 to February 2008, featured a broad
selection of paintings, prints, photographs and drawings
from the early period of Queensland's artistic history.
'Light and Space: Colonial Art and Queensland', which
opened on 28 June 2008, examined how Western visual
art in Queensland began with the work of exploration
artists such as William Westall, who accompanied
Matthew Flinders on his circumnavigation of Australia
from 1801 to 1803. The display featured Westall's prints
from the voyage among a number of new acquisitions.
Notable was a selection of lithographs produced in
Brisbane in 1865 by Silvester Diggles (1817–80), a key
figure in the early cultural life of Brisbane and a notable
ornithologist.
Protest: Australian Political Posters 1972–92
This display (28 July 2007 – 24 February 2008) of posters
ranged from raw calls to action to more complex images.
Political activism characterised the years from the mid
1960s to the early 1990s in Australia. In an international
climate of disquiet, Australia's youth took their cue from
events such as the 1968 Paris riots and student protests
on North American college campuses. Political posters
were a visual irritant, intended to shock or outrage
viewers in order to stimulate discussion about the issues
they raised.
Three Ways: Contemporary Sculpture from the Collection
This display (28 July – 30 September 2007) brought
together works from three diverse origins in the Collection
as a way of exploring sculpture across cultures. A group of
Morning Star Poles by Aboriginal artists from Elcho Island,
off the coast of the Northern Territory, was displayed with
installations by Indonesian artist Dadang Christanto and
senior Australian artist Mike Parr. The display suggested
the broad interests of contemporary sculptors, as each
work was composed of multiple elements, drawing on the
varied materials used in sculpture today, from bronze to
feathers to bamboo.
Asian Gallery
Important works from the Collection, including the newly
acquired pair of Japanese six-fold screens depicting
scenes from the Tale of Genji, continued to be displayed
alongside objects on long-term loan from prestigious
international collections. Since December 2006, the Asian
collections have been augmented by significant works on
long-term loan from private and public collections. In
2007–08, the Long-term Loans Program incorporated the
display of Persian miniatures and porcelains, ancient
near-Eastern pottery and Khmer ceramics from the
Smithsonian Institution's Arthur M Sackler Gallery,
Washington DC; sixteenth- to eighteenth-century tea
wares from the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Japan; and
Joseon dynasty porcelains from the National Museum of
Korea, augmented by a display of Song dynasty ceramics,
including celadons and works from four of the Five
Famous Kilns, loaned by the Shanghai Museum.
International Galleries
La Belle Hollandaise1905 by Pablo Picasso was reframed
and displayed with two works on paper and a ceramic
work Large pitcher with two faces 1951, to coincide with
the exhibition 'Picasso & his collection'.
Sculptures from the international collection by Anthony
Caro, Mimmo Paladino and Joan Miró formed part of an
installation of sculpture in the Robin Gibson-designed
entry to QAG and the adjacent Watermall.