the gathering

Presented in association with Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts

the gathering is a reflection upon the act of gathering – of bringing together peoples, words, politics, objects, images, identities, histories, dreams and concerns. In the here and now, First Peoples and People of Colour find themselves simultaneously navigating a global health crisis and a historic moment of global awareness of systemic racism and the continued oppression of communities based on race and colour. For many, this is the moment to gather, to make collective voices heard, to be highly visible, to show resilience and resistance. It is also however a moment where those actions come with unprecedented risk to our communities.

For First Peoples the act of coming together is integral to individual and collective selfhood. In gathering, the very fabric of our identities is formed, our place in the world is determined and decisions around our futures are forged. Recent times have reminded us how important contact with each other is to our wellbeing, while asking us to rethink the ways that we gather and share time and space.

Bringing together the voices of First Nations artists from Australia, Māori artists from Aotearoa New Zealand and Australian South Sea Islander artists, the gathering explores historic journeys to faraway places during the colonial adventure, the complexities of written and unwritten histories, relationships to and custodianship of cultural and physical homelands and the politics of race and belonging, historically and in the present.

Showcasing existing and newly commissioned sculpture, video, photography, painting and installation from artists Jasmine Togo-Brisby, Dean Cross, Sharyn Egan, Peggy Griffiths-Madij, Yabini Kickett, Bridget Reweti, Damien Shen and James Tylor, the gathering is an invitation for audiences to reconsider histories, our new realities and our shared humanity, at a time when the world is united in so many ways, but increasingly divided in others. Throughout the exhibition there will be opportunities to hear from special guests, to participate in challenging, but necessary, conversations and to learn more about the histories and cultures which inform the artists’ work.