Triple Treat as New Exhibitions Open at MAC

Published on 02 September 2020

Artworks by some of the Hunter Region’s most creative expats feature in one of three new exhibitions now open at the Museum of Art and Culture.

Luke Sales – the talent behind the internationally renowned fashion label Romance Was Born, photographer Karin Catt, ballet dancer Damian Smith, Helen Britton, sculptor Jamie North and photographer Trent Parke are among the artists included in the Present Company exhibition.

MAC Senior Curator Meryl Ryan said each featured artist had moved further afield since cutting their creative teeth in the region, from Sydney and Adelaide to Munich, San Francisco, Santa Fe and New York.

“The common thread between them is the fact they all come from the Hunter and have now all enjoyed success on a much larger stage,” Ms Ryan said.

“From wearable art and performance to installations, paintings, photography and sculpture, the works on display acknowledge the diversity and significance of their achievements.”

Also now open is Manggan – gather, gathers, gathering, featuring contemporary Aboriginal art and cultural objects from Queensland’s Girringun region.

In a separate space in the gallery, Architecture is the latest in MAC’s ongoing Art in Your Community series, featuring the works of local artists and community groups.

Artists for this instalment in the series were challenged to express architecture through two-dimensional artforms such as drawing, painting, photography and printmaking.

The three new exhibitions follow MAC’s successful Reconnected, which featured dozens of works by Lake Macquarie artists.

MAC Director Debbie Abraham said 35 works worth a total of more than $23,000 sold during the exhibition.

“The success of Reconnected demonstrated the talent of our local artists, and the appetite of the wider community to invest in their works,” Ms Abraham said.

Architecture and Manggan are open until 29 November, while Present Company is open until 6 December.