Since December 2021 I have been working on the exhibition Under A Southern Star: Identity and Environment in Australian Photography for Curatorial Exhibitions in Pasadena, California. As curatorial consultant, I have had the pleasure of working with Debra Klochko, Director and Chief Curator of the Museum of Photographic Art, San Diego, and Graham Howe, CEO of Curatorial Exhibitions to include several Australian artists to this stunningly wonderful exhibition.

Artists whose work is showcased in the exhibition are Pat Brassington, Michael Cook, Leah King-Smith, Rosemary Laing, Ricky Maynard, Tracey Mofatt, Polexeni Papapetrou, Trent Parke, Vee Speers, Tobias Titz, James Tylor, Justine Varga, and Anne Zahalka.

As one of the most diverse, multicultural countries in the world today, Australia is a place where artists examine their past to find their future. Urgently navigating their post-colonial history with a desire to respect and reconcile Indigenous, Anglo-European, Asian and other cultures, Australian artists explore questions of identity and belonging in the context of an increasingly ecologically fragile continent. These challenging circumstances have given rise to some of the most exciting and meaningful contemporary photography anywhere.

Inspired by the Peter Farrell Australian Photography Collection at the Museum of Photographic Art, San Diego, the exhibition combines iconic images from Australia’s photographic history with powerful work by eleven internationally renowned Australian contemporary artists. “Under a Southern Star” navigates the cultural collision between the “Old World” of Europe and the so-called “New World” of Terra Australis, illustrating changing views of Australian identity, and confronting omissions.

 As a dialogue relevant not only to Australia but also to the United States, Canada and any country with a colonial history, Under A Southern Star asks all the right questions and allows us all to form our own answers. This exhibition is now available for touring so please let me know if you would like to see it appear in a venue near you.

More information on this exhibition can be seen here: https://curatorial.com/current-exhibitions/under-a-southern-star