NAS at NSW Parliament

NAS at NSW Parliament

National Art School in the NSW Landscape is a new exhibition at NSW Parliament House from 9 – 31 March 2022. It explores the relationship between people, land and culture across the state through artworks by 21 significant Australian artists who studied at the National Art School (NAS), which this year celebrates 100 years since moving into the former Darlinghurst Gaol site in inner-city Sydney. Together these works highlight the importance of artistic expression to inform our understanding of the environment in different regions, from the rural experience to urban living.

Featuring 27 major artworks in various media including tapestry, collage and ceramics, this show represents the enormous diversity of NSW’s landscape, environment and culture. The works encompass urban, rural, coastal, desert and mountainous locations, from Lake Mungo by Elizabeth Cummings to John Olsen’s Bathurst Butter and Sydney Harbour from the Rocks by Margaret Olley.

National Art School in the NSW Landscape also presents the work of First Nations artists Euphemia Bostock, Thancoupie Gloria Fletcher James, Jeffrey Samuels, Karla Dickens and Fiona Foley, whose diverse techniques and materials include screen printing, ceramics, photographic prints, drawing and mixed media. First Peoples knowledge and custodianship of country is crucial to any deeper understanding of the connections to land and culture in NSW and Australia.

NAS Director and CEO Steven Alderton says, “This exhibition reflects the extraordinary diversity of practices and sensibilities among NAS alumni, who have in turn shaped Australia’s contemporary art landscape for generations. We are proud to be presenting their work at Parliament House, sharing their personal visions of NSW.”

The exhibition is hosted at NSW Parliament by the Honourable Don Harwin, member of the NSW Legislative Council. “As the leading fine art school in the country, NAS has produced many distinguished and talented alumni. This exhibition celebrates the state’s rich visual arts landscape and how it has shaped who we are today,” Mr Harwin said. “National Art School in the NSW Landscape – now on display in the Fountain Court – is an instalment of Parliament’s monthly exhibition program and is open to the public to enjoy.”

NAS is the longest-running independent art school in Australia, located in the NSW State heritage-listed former Darlinghurst Gaol site. Its intensive studio-based model of art education has produced successive generations of Australia’s leading artists, shaping the cultural identity of NSW. In 2022, NAS marks a significant double century – 100 years since moving to the Darlinghurst Gaol site in 1922, and 200 years since building began on the gaol in 1822. To celebrate the centenary year, an extensive program featuring School’s alumni is underway, including this exhibition.

Artists
Euphemia Bostock, John Coburn, Kevin Connor, Lucy Culliton, Elisabeth Cummings, Karla Dickens, Ken Done AM, Eliza Gosse, Fiona Foley, Michael Johnson, Bronte Leighton-Dore, Guido Maestri, Idris Murphy, Margaret Olley AC, John Olsen AO OBE, Jeffrey Samuels, Luke Sciberras, Tim Storrier AM, Thancoupie Gloria Fletcher James AO, Guy Warren AM, Anne Zahalka

National Art School in the NSW Landscape

The Fountain Court, Parliament of New South Wales
6 Macquarie Street, Sydney
Monday to Sunday, 9am–5pm

Image Caption:
Margaret Olley
Sydney Harbour from The Rocks, 2009-2011
oil on board, image size: 53.4 x 91.8 cm, frame size: 73.2 x 111.5 cm
Tweed Regional Gallery Collection
Donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program by Andrew Greig, 2017
© Margaret Olley Art Trust
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Opening night: The Neighbour at the Gate 

Join us on Thursday 10 July for the opening night of The Neighbour at the Gate, a major exhibition at the National Art School Gallery, curated by a guest curatorium led by Clothilde Bullen (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.

RSVP at the link in bio.
Burned trees build no homes. 

Today we acknowledge World Environment Day with this work by alum Una Foster, now in the National Art School Collection.
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Una Foster, ‘Burned Trees Build No Homes’, c.1945, commercial print on paper; image courtesy the artist and National Art School © Una Foster. From the National Art School Collection.
This end of financial year, support the next generation of artists through the National Art School’s Pathways Program.

Your donation will be vital in helping us build a more inclusive and vibrant arts community — creating crucial pathways for talented artists to become leading international artists, regardless of their background.

Support our EOFY campaign via the link in bio and help us to break down barriers to art education.
In June, we celebrate World Pride Month. Like many other culturally significant times, it’s a month that’s meaningful to our community and the Oxford precinct we are part of. 

In 2015, NAS alum Todd Fuller (@fuller_todd) sent members of the public black and white drawings depicting two men engaged in a passionate kiss. The participants were encouraged to respond to the image by colouring in the figures, with the resulting images compiled by Fuller into a mixed media video animation. 

Fuller gifted this work to the National Art School Collection, a collection that performs a major role within the National Art School as both a teaching resource and a historical record. Visit our website to find out more about the works in our collection.

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Todd Fuller, ‘The Unite Project - 3rd generation ‘, 2015, mixed media animation, colour and sound, 13.35 mins loop; image courtesy the artist and National Art School © Todd Fuller. From the National Art School Collection - Gift of Todd Fuller.
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