One of Australia’s biggest and most ambitious art fairs is returning to Carriageworks this September with a blockbuster program spanning installations, performance, talks, and an impressive offering from participating galleries.
From a solo presentation of Darren Sykvester at Neon Parc to a sculptural installation by Clifford Thompson Japaljarri at CASSANDRA BIRD Gallery, audiences can expect variety. Artereal Gallery is showing a solo exhibition of artist and psychotherapist Noula Diamantopoulos, while OLSEN Gallery is presenting new works by four young female artists—Leila Jeffreys, Eliza Gosse, Dani McKenzie, and Holly Greenwood—alongside senior Gija artist Shirley Purdie. Emil Cañita is making their Sydney Contemporary debut at the MARS Gallery both, alongside Atong Atem and Daniel Agdag.
View, in pictures, just some of the artwork highlights coming to Sydney Contemporary this year.
Lewis Fidock & Joshua Petherick, Sleeve, 2017, PVC, modelling clay, ultracal, steel mesh, coated wire, acrylic paint, raw pigment, metallic paint, textured effect, solvent based dye-oxide, satin varnish, archival varnish, 142x22x28cm. 1301SW | STARKWHITE. Melbourne & Sydney, Australia | Auckland & Queenstown, New Zealand.
Noula Diamantopoulos, here–Iam,IAm–here,amI–here?, 2016, neon, acrylic sheet, 83x100cm. Artereal Gallery, Sydney, Australia.
Claire Healy and Sean Cordeiro, Wake in fright, 2024, acrylic and gouache on truck doors, led lights, 262x121x10cm. Jacob Hoerner Galleries | MAGMA Galleries, Melbourne, Australia.
Francis Upritchard, Reach, 2022, bronze, 118.1×47.8x126cm. Fine Arts, Sydney, Australia.
Emma Langridge, Calx, 2023, acrylic on wooden support, 101.5×76.3cm. Five Walls Gallery, Melbourne, Australia.
Susie Choi, Not from here, 2023, mid fired porcelain, glaze, lustre, silk, 37x33x6cm. Sabbia Gallery, Sydney, Australia.
Marlene Gilson, Raising the Flags, 2022, acrylic on linen, 76x100cm. Martin Browne Contemporary, Sydney, Australia.
Graeme Drendel, Monument 2, 2024, oil on canvas, 198×244 cm. Australian Galleries, Melbourne & Sydney, Australia.
Gian Manik, Act 1. A square in Barcelona, 2023, oil on linen, 91.5×152.5cm. Sutton Gallery, Melbourne, Australia.
Brett Whiteley, Still Life with Fruit Basket, pen and ink on paper, 22 x 17c. Justin Miller Art, Sydney, Australia.
Clifford Thompson Japaljarri and Lindsay Nelson Jakamarra, Untitled, 2023, mixed media on 44 gallon drums, 294 x 54cm. CASSANDRA BIRD, Sydney, Australia.
Darrell Sibosado, Ngargidj Mor (the proper path to follow, 2022, powder-coated steel, LED tubes, fittings, electrical component, each 300 ×245 x 8 cm. Smith Gallery, Sydney, Australia.
Sydney Contemporary
Carriageworks
5—8 September
Suggested Reading
65,000 Years brings truth telling to art history
65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art is an extraordinary account of the unique art of this continent, published alongside a landmark exhibition at the Potter Museum of Art. Necessary and urgent, it tells the story of Indigenous Australian art; a new art history unlike anything we’ve seen. For Jane O’Sullivan, it’s a remarkable and must-read book.
Jane O'Sullivan
Oslo Davis reimagines art terms
In a new series of illustrated postcards available as a free gift with purchase only at the Art Guide Bookstore, Oslo Davis takes on classic and contemporary art terms and genres and reimagines what they could be referring to.
Oslo Davis
The major exhibitions open in each capital city this summer
With so much to choose from, we’ve rounded up the major summer exhibitions in each capital city, open all summer long. Spanning Yayoi Kusama, Magritte, the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, and many more.
Art Guide Australia
Reviving the potter’s quarter
In an expansive show at the Chau Chak Wing Museum, seven leading Australian ceramic artists have reinvigorated one of Australia’s oldest museum collections by creating a contemporary potter’s quarter—known as the ‘kerameikos’ in Ancient Greece.
Michelle Wang
Raining cats and dogs
Whether beloved pets or superstitious omens, animals have always existed in art. The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia’s latest exhibition is paying tribute to two of the most beloved animal figures: cats and dogs.
Art Guide Australia
Ben Quilty on painting paradoxes
Ahead of his major retrospective at Jan Murphy Gallery, Ben Quilty spoke with fellow painter Georgia Spain about wrestling with mythology, the contradictions of joy and suffering, and a belief in art as an antidote to an increasingly volatile world.