Role playing & humour functions as a tool for video art

For nearly two decades, Salote Tawale has upended viewers’ and critics’ expectations of who she is and what she is likely to do next. Significantly, she refuses for her art practice to be categorised as a symbol of ‘Pacific-ness’ or her place of birth – Fiji. You can watch Tawale’s work in the exhibition ‘sis:…

Hey sis

Since the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT) began in 1993, the series has been celebrated for its engagement with Aotearoa New Zealand and the wider Pacific. Through the APT, the Gallery has built a collection of vibrant works by Pacific women artists. A significant number of these have been acquired through generous bequests…

The ACE Project: Returning home

Edith Amituanai’s captivating ‘L’a’u Pele Moana (My darling Moana)’ 2021 (Illustrated) was one of the first artworks to be installed as part of ‘The 10th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art’ (APT10). Its imprint on me was immediate. Waves of sentimentality washed over me as I indulged in the slices of life captured by Edith…

Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner: A spoken-word poet for resilience & hope

Known internationally for its history as a nuclear testing site, and home to one of America’s most advanced military bases, the Republic of the Marshall Islands is also on the frontline of the global struggle against climate change. Yet, intertwined within the narrative of human disregard, and an increasing susceptibility to the dire effects of…

Beacons of hope: 5 indigenous voices

‘The 9th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art’ (APT9) featured a diversity of indigenous voices — the largest contingent in the Triennial’s history — who share a common experience of dislocation through European settler occupation. Brisbane-based Indigenous artist Ryan Presley looks at how the practices of five of these artists engage with the legacy of…