Artist Talk - Jenna Mayilema Lee

Hear Gulumerridjin (Larrakia) Wardaman and KarraJarri woman artist Jenna Mayilema Lee in conversation with her father Christopher Bandirra Lee, facilitated by lead exhibition curator Clothilde Bullen OAM.

The talk will discuss Jenna’s commissioned installation work Portal to bangarr (billabong) (2025) which reflects on transitional spaces that transcend physical boundaries, using water – and specifically the bangarr or billabong – as a metaphor for deep cultural connection and shared histories around food and ritual.

About the Exhibition

The Neighbour at the Gate is a major exhibition at the National Art School Gallery, curated by a guest curatorium led by Clothilde Bullen OAM (Wardandi Noongar and Badimaya Yamatji), with Micheal Do and Zali Morgan (Whadjuk Balladong and Wilman Noongar).

Bringing together newly commissioned works by leading Australian artists Jacky Cheng, Elham Eshraghian-Haakansson, Dennis Golding (Kamilaroi/​Gamilaraay), Jenna Mayilema Lee (Gulumerridjin (Larrakia), Wardaman, KarraJarri), James Nguyen and James Tylor (Kaurna, Thura-Yura language region), the exhibition reckons with the echoes of immigration policies and the legacies of Colonialism in Australia, unravelling how these forces continue to shape First Nations and Asian Australian experiences and relationships.

Across various mediums and perspectives, The Neighbour at the Gate charts the entangled legacies of exclusion and resilience, drawing vital parallels between the past and present, memory and nationhood.

The Neighbour at the Gate has been made possible with the generous support of the NSW Government through its Blockbusters Funding initiative.