Year ahead at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
140 George Street
The Rocks, Sydney, NSW 2000
The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA) announces its 2014 Exhibition Program.
MCA Collection: New Acquisitions in Context 2013 (12 December 2013–23 February 2014) showcases a cross-section of newly acquired Australian and international contemporary art alongside existing artworks from the MCA’s collection.
War is Over! (if you want it): Yoko Ono (15 November 2013–23 February 2014) is the first major Australian survey of works by legendary artist, musician and activist Yoko Ono. Curated specifically for the MCA, which is the only Australian venue for the exhibition, it encompasses five decades of practice and traverses the themes of loss, conflict, humanity and the desire for world peace. This exhibition is part of the Sydney International Art Series.
19th Biennale of Sydney: You Imagine What You Desire (21 March–9 June) draws on the elements of air and water and delves into the realms of the imaginative and the surreal. As one of the participating venues, the MCA will present a site-specific video installation by Swiss artist Pipilotti Rist, and a mixed-media installation by Scottish artist Douglas Gordon featuring the haunting voice of musician Rufus Wainwright.
Tabaimo (3 July–7 September) is a comprehensive survey of works by leading Japanese artist Tabaimo. The exhibition includes multi-screen video works that immerse gallery visitors within constantly moving, changing environments that combine hand-drawn imagery and sound.
Annette Messager (24 July–26 October) features works by internationally renowned French artist Annette Messager in her first retrospective exhibition in Australia. Works in the exhibition encompass the period from the late 1970s to the present and include large kinetic installations with mechanical and inflatable elements.
Martu Art from The Far Western Desert (24 September–30 November) is an exhibition of vast and vibrant paintings by artists of the Martu people who are the traditional owners and custodians of the Great Sandy, Little Sandy and Gibson Deserts in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Reflected in the paintings are the Martu traditions of aural history, collective storytelling, dance and ritual.
Primavera 2014: Young Australian Artists (24 September–30 November) is an annual exhibition of young Australian artists aged 35 years and under.
Chuck Close (20 November 2014–8 March 2015) is the largest survey of works ever presented in Australia by one of America’s best-loved visual artists, Chuck Close. His large-scale, photo-based portrait paintings and prints challenge and blur the boundaries between the traditionally defined media of photography and printmaking and employ highly inventive techniques that include etching and traditional Japanese woodcut, among others.
The ongoing Volume One: MCA Collection hang has featured works by Australian artists since the founding of the MCA in May 1989. Including work by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists, this presentation reflects the diversity of Australian contemporary art over the last 20 years.
MCA Director Elizabeth Ann Macgregor OBE said: ‘This year’s MCA exhibition program reflects our ongoing commitment to sharing the best in Australian and international contemporary art and invites audiences to experience works that engage, inspire and raise questions that may have a wider relevance within society.’
Media contact:
Nicole Trian, Public Relations Manager, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
M + 61 (0) 429 572 869 / nicole.trian [at] mca.com.au
