previous Exhibitions
Djerrkngu Yunupingu: I am a Mermaid
ALCASTON GALLERY EXHIBITION SPACE IS LOCATED AT 84 WILLIAM STREET MELBOURNE VIC 3000.
Djerrkŋu Yunupiŋu is a senior Yolŋu elder and emerging artist based in Yirrkala in the Northern Territory and she is a member of the creative Yunupiŋu family of artists. She is the leader of a group of women healers who provide bush medicine and healing to both Yolŋu and non-Indigenous people.
In her extraordinary paintings on bark and timber board, Yunupiŋu portrays the story of her conception as the spiritual mermaid, using a unique combination of natural earth pigments and reclaimed toner ink (ground polyester) from discarded printer cartridges. This deeply personal depiction of the artist’s spiritual conception has been transposed by Yunupiŋu into a highly distinctive and contemporary artistic aesthetic.
I have personally sailed out to visit some of the most remote places in the Wessel Island group, off the far north coast of mainland Australia, therefore I have tried to visualise the journey embarked on by the artist’s father with his wives and children including Nyapanyapa Yunupiŋu as a baby, departing from Marchinbar, the largest of the Wessel Islands by dugout canoe across the sea heading for Yirrkala.
Djerrkŋu Yunupiŋu’s remarkable paintings in I am a Mermaid range from varied portrayals of the mermaid dream her father recalled when her mother was pregnant with her, to her wedding day depicting her much loved sister Gulumbu Yunupiŋu. Looking at these intimate and intricate paintings depicting of the artist’s life, it is easy to allow your mind to wander, and contemplate her life stories; the white waves, the star-filled sky, and her father first seeing the mermaid sitting on the rock.
Alcaston Gallery is proud to exhibit the new and emerging work of Djerrkŋu Yunupiŋu, which signals a continuation of the astounding creativity of the Yunupiŋu women.
- Beverly Knight, Director, Alcaston Gallery
April 2021
ALCASTON GALLERY - A CONTINUING CELEBRATION OF WOMEN
In 2024, Alcaston Gallery is once again proud to celebrate and advocate for International Women's Day.
This year's theme is Inspire Inclusion; to inspire a sense of belonging, relevance, and empowerment; to build a more inclusive world for all women; to invest in women and accelerate progress!
Alcaston Gallery has invested significantly in First Nations women artists - with rewards for the artists, financially and culturally, having a significant rippling effect for their families and ...
Rene Sundown •Ngura Tali - Sand Dune Country
Alcaston Gallery is thrilled to introduce respected senior Yankunytjatjara artist, Rene Sundown, in her debut exhibition with the gallery, Ngura Tali - Sand Dune Country.
Sundown is a senior artist and longstanding director of the Iwantja Art Centre in Indulkana, South Australia, whose practice is dedicated to passing on knowledge to future generations. Having exhibited in important national and international group exhibitions over the past decade, this will be Sundown’s ...
Alcaston Gallery Christmas Gifts Exhibition 2023•Limited edition PRINTS and WORKS ON PAPER
Alcaston Gallery Christmas Gifts Exhibition 2023 presents exceptional works on paper and limited edition prints from over thirty-five years of contemporary Australian First Nations art showcasing a selection of rare and special release works by important artists on exhibition at the Alcaston Gallery Exhibition Space, 84 William Street, Melbourne/Naarm from 29 November until 15 December 2023.
CLAY•Ben McKeown•Karen Mills•Dean Smith
Clay comes from the earth; in its many forms, textures and colours, clay harnesses our world’s enigmatic power, energy, and secret life force.
With its affinity to earth and water, clay is an accumulated matrix of plant, animal, and mineral; wet or dry, white or coloured, this natural material has been used since ancient times in the form of ochre in sacred ceremonies and for medicinal purposes, as well as a strong, pliable matter for utilitarian functions such as building, cooking and creating practical ...
All About Art - Annual Collectors Exhibition: Counterpoint•Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori (c.1924 -2015)
Alcaston Gallery is honoured to present two solo exhibitions in conjunction with the Estates of Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori (c.1924 - 2015) and Ginger Riley Munduwalawala (c.1936 – 2002).
Alcaston Gallery’s annual All About Art collectors’ exhibition will include significant paintings within the theme of our 2024 exhibition series Counterpoint. As Ginger Riley would often say, “the same but different”. Gabori and Riley are both remembered as two of Australia’s most influential ...
