The skull is one of the most culturally recognisable, yet also highly malleable, visual symbols. Invoked by artists and poets alike, the motif refers to fear, danger, decay and the occult, while also having spiritual and, in today’s world, commercial resonances. Romancing the skull at the Art Gallery of Ballarat explores the ongoing visual appeal of the human skull, showing works from the Middle Ages to now.
As curator Julie McLaren says, “The skull has always been an iconic symbol, and it is frequently featured in art. This tribute to the skull poses the question, ‘Why has it been so fascinating for so long to so many people?’”
Questions of mortality and the passing of time are central to this fascination, and many works in the exhibition link the skull to both nature and symbols that represent our understanding of duration and decay.
The show also looks at political and rebellious uses of the skull, such as Daniel Boyd’s Jolly Jack, 2005, which features a pirate-like skull imposed over the British flag. Also featured are eX de Medici’s watercolours, which often use the skull as a motif to explore the workings of contemporary power.
Created during the late 1800s, and now linked to the Day of the Dead celebrations, these satirical works depict a series of skeletons playfully cavorting in the afterlife. Going back even further in time, the exhibition also features a Nuremberg Chronicle from 1493 which depicts one of the earliest Dance of Death images.
While the exhibition continuously blends the historical and the contemporary, there is one particular work that references both simultaneously: Shaun Gladwell’s virtual reality piece Orbital Vanitas, 2016. In this work a lone human skull, created in the vanitas tradition, orbits earth. Viewers are transported to outer space, prompted to watch as the floating skull gravitates towards them.
Romancing the skull also features contemporary Australian artists Sam Jinks, Rona Green and Ben Quilty, as well as new commissions by Fiona Hall, Reko Rennie and Sally Smart.
Romancing the skull
Art Gallery of Ballarat
14 October – 28 January 2018
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.
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.
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.
The growing cultural interest in art books reflects the enduring power of the printed word. Jane O’Sullivan takes a closer look.
Heide Museum of Modern Art’s summer blockbuster exhibition is unveiling the breadth and beauty of Italian modernism through design. With over 170 objects spanning sixty years, Molto Bello explores the cultural impact of this period of creativity and invention.
Symbols and images dance across Nathan Beard’s vast body of work, all connecting back to his Thai-Australian heritage. We step inside the artist’s studio space in Preston, Victoria, and discuss his upcoming exhibition at Sweet Pea Gallery.
