Contemporary Australia: Women

11 Director’s foreword Director’s foreword Tony Ayres China/Australia b.1961 The Home Song Stories (production still) 2007 35mm, colour, Dolby digital, 99 minutes Following Monika Tichacek Switzerland/Australia b.1975 to all my relations 1 (detail) 2011 Gouache, pencil and watercolour on paper Diptych: 244 x 300cm (overall) The Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art initiates fresh approaches to the scholarship and the presentation of contemporary art and artists. ‘Contemporary Australia: Women’ is the second exhibition in the Gallery’s series dedicated to contemporary Australian art. It builds on the wealth of experience we have in presenting innovative, challenging and sophisticated work by contemporary artists, garnered from our flagship triennial series, the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, along with other important projects such as ‘Contemporary Australia: Optimism’ (2008) and ‘21st Century: Art in the First Decade’ (2010). We believe the achievements by women artists, particularly in recent decades, speak to the vibrancy of artistic practice in this country. This exhibition celebrates the way senior, established and emerging Indigenous and non-Indigenous women artists have reshaped, and continue to shape, art in Australia. Clearly, female artists work across a range of ideas and media with enormous confidence, commitment and energy. This creative energy is expressed in many surprising and illuminating ways — the importance of cross-generational exchange is evident in the collaborative paintings from the Tjala Arts Centre in South Australia’s Amata community; a group of performative works, collectively entitled Embodied Acts, emphasises the enterprising ways that many younger artists are acting in and on the world; and Fiona Hall’s interactive Children’s Art Centre exhibition ‘Fly Away Home’ speaks to the potential for openness in artists’ dialogue with audiences of all ages. ‘Contemporary Australia: Women’ references the historic achievements of Australian women artists and contributes to current scholarship on art by women. I thank the writers, curators and scholars who have contributed to this publication, and who have teased out the central themes of the exhibition. Contemporary Australia: Women in Film — a substantial and innovative cinema program considering representations of women in Australian films by both female and male directors — is integral to this project. I sincerely thank guest co-curator Margaret Pomeranz, AM , who has worked with the Gallery’s Australian Cinémathèque staff to profile the ways women have been central to recent developments in Australian cinema. A project of this scale would not have been possible without the support of our many sponsors who share our passion for innovative exhibitions and programming. I gratefully acknowledge the ongoing support of the Queensland Government. We are delighted to welcome Audi as the Principal Sponsor of this exhibition, the first in the company’s exciting new partnership with QAGOMA. I thank the Chairman’s Circle, a select group of corporate leaders who share our passion for supporting the development of innovative exhibitions and programs. Gadens Lawyers have also generously extended their support of this project to include sponsorship of the Women in Film program. We are delighted to again partner with ABC Radio National to present GOMA Talks and I extend our sincere thanks to our Media Partner Adshel. Julie Ewington, the Gallery’s Curatorial Manager, Australian Art, has been instrumental in leading the exhibition’s curatorial team — the expertise and commitment she has brought to this project is second to none. I also thank Bree Richards, Assistant Curator, Contemporary Australian Art, and Rosie Hays, Associate Curator, Australian Cinémathèque, for their incredible dedication to, and enthusiasm for, this project. I acknowledge the substantial efforts of all the Gallery’s staff and particularly thank my Executive Management Team: Suhanya Raffel, Deputy Director, Curatorial and Collection Development; Andrew Clark, Deputy Director, Programming and Corporate Services; and Celestine Doyle, Executive Manager, Marketing and Business Development. Finally — and most importantly — I thank all the exhibiting artists and filmmakers for their vision, passion and commitment to creative pursuits. This exhibition and publication stands as testament to the incredible talent of contemporary women artists in Australia today. Tony Ellwood Director