AGSA (
The Art Gallery of South Australia)
Walking into AGSA, just beyond the doorframe of their ongoing collection, a stretch of red mesh peers from an archway atop a set of steep stairs. At least, it looks like red mesh from afar. Edge closer and see Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota’s uniquely immersive work Absence embodied, a piece commissioned specifically for the gallery space. Drawing conceptually from the complexity and nuance of human nature, getting lost in the seemingly endless threads isn’t hard to do; particularly with the structure calling to mind a spider’s web, thanks to it’s mass of taut strings coming together to create larger, overarching, natural curvatures.
Enter deeper into the gallery to see a focus on Renaissance-style art reimagined, with a bronze sculpture of a nude Buck (not the deer, the famed trans porn star) and a garden-variety Yayoi Kusama pumpkin (see what I did there?).
Perhaps what really shone in AGSA that day was the atmosphere that ran beyond it’s standard offering; being a Sunday, canonically of course a family day in good Christian Australia, AGSA offered a family-friendly, outdoor Sunday Session to make the best of the warm summer weather. However, with the current featured exhibition Tarnanthi taking place concurrently, Sunday Sessions feature independent film screenings and live musical performances by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Focused on giving a platform to emerging contemporary First Nations artists, Tarnanthi showcases pieces with the aim to provide artists opportunity to extend their works. With both contemporary interpretations alongside traditional creations, the diverse collection poses a strong starting point for reconnecting with traditional custodians of the land.
Thank you, Adelaide - you did not let the art lover in me down.
