The Veil

Offering a deep exploration into identity, memory and cultural resilience,the veil journeyed into the realm of the spiritual, exposing otherworldly experiences that were central to our existence though often concealed. The exhibition featured new commissions and recent university acquisitions across photography, film, weaving, fibre art, experimental printmaking, and kinetic sculpture.

Curator Hannah Presley said: “There have always been places described as transitional, spooky, or strange spaces that hum with energy, where the air feels thin and the light is dappled. These uncanny or supernatural qualities are reflected in the exhibition, revealing a familiarity with the spirit world, which in some cases profoundly influences the artists’ everyday lives. The artworks in ‘the veil’ serve as a portal or a liminal space created through the expression of culture, memory, and emotional residue.” 

Central to the exhibition was a major new film commissioned for the veil, from Gunditjmara, Djabwurrung, and Nira-Bulok Taungurung artist Hayley Millar Baker, titled Eternity the Butterfly. Millar Baker’s first film Nyctinasty and her second, The Umbra were also on display – marking the first time all three films were presented together. Naarm/Melbourne based artist Hannah Gartside presented new and existing sculptural works, spanning a period of ten years, and, in an Australian premiere, Polish artist Aneta Grzeszykowska presented a specially curated selection of fourteen works from her photographic series Mama, exhibited in Milk of Dreams at the 59th Venice Biennale in 2022. Lena Yarinkura was a senior Kune artist living and working between Maningrida and outstations, Buluhkaduru and Ankabadbirri in Arnhem Land; for the veil, Yarinkura created a new series of Gnarr (spiders) and two large-scale works that told the story of Wititj and the Two Sisters. Celebrated mixed-cultural First Nations artist and curator Lisa Waup reimagined her ambitious installation holding Country, alongside The Reflection Net, by Waddi Waddi, Ngarrindjeri and Yorta Yorta artist and master weaver Glenda Nicholls, both new acquisitions to the University of Melbourne that were presented at Buxton Contemporary for the first time.

Hear from the artists

Artists: Hayley Millar Baker , Hannah Gartside , Aneta Grzeszykowska , Glenda Nicholls, Lisa Waup and Lena Yarinkura .

Curated by Hannah Presley
Assistant Curator Isabella Hone-Saunders

Gallery

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