Institute of Modern Art
420 Brunswick Street
Fortitude Valley
Brisbane, Queensland, 4006
Australia
T +61 (0) 7 3252 5750
ima [at] ima.org.au
As one of Australia’s leading independent forums for contemporary art, the Institute of Modern Art (IMA) has produced over 500 exhibitions featuring more than 2000 artists and countless public programs over forty years. In 2016, we continue to commission and present works by Australian and international artists at pivotal points in their practices.
Rana Hamadeh
20 February–30 April
The 2016 exhibition program begins with a major commission by Beirut-born, Rotterdam-based artist Rana Hamadeh. The Sleepwalkers is the latest chapter in her project Alien Encounters (2011–ongoing). This immersive filmed play departs from the story of the infamous Egyptian serial-killer sisters Raya and Sakina Ali Hamam. It is the result of an exciting co-commission by the IMA, The Showroom, London, and Nottingham Contemporary with Flat Time House, London, and Primary, Nottingham. Hamadeh’s recent exhibitions include Agitationism, Eva International, Limerick; A Needle Walks into a Haystack, 8th Liverpool Biennial; and Here and Elsewhere, New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York (all 2014).
Frontier Imaginaries
14 May–9 July
In May, the IMA launches a multi-platform project that explores the condition of the frontier within the era of globalisation, conceived by IMA Curatorial Fellow Vivian Ziherl. In Brisbane, Frontier Imaginaries will be a collaboration with the Queensland University of Technology Art Museum and in partnership with the Australian Cinémathèque at the Queensland Art Gallery I Gallery of Modern Art. At the IMA, No Longer at Ease, draws together Australian and Indigenous artists such as Gordon Hookey and Rachel O’Reilly, with international peers including Alice Creischer and Wendelien van Oldenborgh.
Luke Willis Thompson
30 July–1 October
In July, the IMA will present the first survey exhibition of Auckland-born, London-based artist Luke Willis Thompson. Across three gallery spaces, Thompson’s show will present a number of works addressing issues of bio- and necro- politics in Australia and the Pacific. Recent exhibitions include Surround Audience, New Museum Triennial, New York (2015); Foreign Exchange (Or The Stories You Wouldn’t Tell a Stranger), Weltkulturen Museum, Frankfurt (2014); and The 5th Auckland Triennial, Auckland Art Gallery (2013).
Maryam Jafri
30 July–1 October
Concurrent with Thompson’s exhibition, the IMA will present the first solo presentation in Australia of Maryam Jafri’s work. Dividing her time between Copenhagen and New York, Jafri is an artist working in video, performance and photography, with a specific interest in questioning the cultural and visual representation of history, politics and economy. She has exhibited extensively, including solo presentations at Bétonsalon, Paris; Bielefelder Kunstverein; and Kunsthalle Basel.
Nicholas Mangan
22 October–24 December
The year ends with a survey show by Melbourne-based artist Nicholas Mangan, in collaboration with Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne. The exhibition will present a series of works from the past five years alongside a major new commission. Mangan’s interests in mining and Pacific Island histories are woven together with an intriguing investigation of currencies and the creation of value. Recent exhibitions include Ancient Lights, Chisenhale Gallery, London; Other Currents, Artspace, Sydney; and Surround Audience, New Museum Triennial, New York (all 2015).
The Green Room
Throughout the year, The Green Room will highlight projects with a connection to our region. It is a mutable project platform rather than a fixed space, inhabiting different parts and aspects of the IMA. The initial project for the year will be the first solo exhibition in Queensland of Cairns-born, Sydney-based artist Daniel Boyd, running from 20 February through 24 March. The show focuses on paintings featuring maps; keys for unlocking land, sea, sky and tracing colonial stories. Forthcoming exhibitions and projects include Richard Bell’s Embassy in Brisbane and Cairns, and a survey of current Queensland moving image practices.
Inaugural Courtyard Commission
In late July, the IMA will be a lunching a new programming initiative running parallel to our exhibition and public programs, IMA Courtyard Commission. The inaugural project will be conceived by Brisbane-based artist Vernon Ah Kee.
For more information about the IMA or our program, please contact press [at] ima.org.au, or call T +61 (0) 7 3252 5750.
The IMA is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland, and from the Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council for the Arts, and through the Visual Arts and Craft Strategy, an initiative of the Australian Federal, State, and Territory Governments. The IMA is a member of Contemporary Art Organisations Australia (CAOs).
The IMA’s 2016 exhibition program has been generously supported by Australia Council for the Arts; Arts Queensland; Creative New Zealand; the Department of Communications and the Arts through Indigenous Languages and Arts; the Keir Foundation; Mondriaan Fund; and our 2015 Anniversary Gala and Supporters Group.
