Arts, Culture, SA 0

AGSA Live Events

By Tony Polese · On September 1, 2020

Live events return to
Art Gallery of South Australia
in September with four new exhibitions on display

The Art Gallery of South Australia will welcome the return of live events from Friday 4 September, with a weekend of events and four new exhibitions on display. Following its 10-week temporary closure and pause on events due to COVID-19, AGSA has offered interactive online activities and experiences. AGSA’s enhanced online presence will continue when live events return today, staying connected to new audiences locally, regionally and nationally.

The return of events at AGSA will begin with First Fridays on 4 September, followed by the return of Start at the Gallery, a monthly event for children and families on Sunday 6 September. Weekly lunchtime talks and guided tours will also return from today. Neo, AGSA’s event programmed by teens for teens will return for a full Gallery Teen Takeover in October.

The return of programs and events coincides with four new exhibitions on display at AGSA. Restless Dance Theatre, Australia’s only dance company working with artists with and without disability will perform Seeing Through Darkness throughout September. A physical response to the works of expressionist artist Georges Rouault, Seeing Through Darkness will bring to life the artist’s monochromatic portrayals of humanity with performances throughout September until Friday 2 October.

Developed in response to the pandemic, LOVE IN THE TIME OF COVID-19 is a display of 133 works by artists from Adelaide and across the globe. Adelaide’s GAG Projects invited artists to submit digital works of art to this innovative project, as way of sharing art and embracing solidarity in times of physical distancing. Recently acquired by AGSA, the full suite of digital prints will be displayed for the first time since the project began in April. The diverse range of works reflect the challenges, fears and hopes of this time.

Chromatopia is a collection exhibition that explores how and why artists use colour, introducing the connection between our environment and the colour spectrum. The exhibition began with the rediscovery during AGSA’s closure of a major painting of the British landscape by Dame Laura Knight. This work sits alongside a number of recent Australian and International acquisitions, most of which will be on display for the first time.

Converging currents presents key works from the Gallery’s collection by artists from across Arnhem Land – from the stone country of the Bininj Kunwok people in the west to the saltwater homelands of the Yolŋu in the northeast. Integral to the display is a series of new acquisitions including works by master artists such as Yirawala and respected Yolŋu elder MuŋgurrawuyYunupiŋu.

Director Rhana Devenport ONZM says, ‘Times like these have shown us the importance of connection with each other, and the role that art can play in finding meaning. Four new exhibitions at AGSA drawn from our collection will share different experiences of connection to stories, to our world and to each other. We are thrilled to be able to welcome the return of public programs in September, with ongoing diligence to ensure everyone’s health and safety.’