Alchemy

Spectres/Sentinels

We discuss the eucalypt as sentinel and witness to contested, obscured and enduring histories in Australia. What can we learn from trees that have withstood and absorbed the past, and what can this teach us about our futures?  Featuring Alisa Bunbury [https://www.mup.com.au/books/pride-of-place-hardback], Grimwade Collection Curator at the Ian Potter Museum of Art; Julie Gough, [https://juliegough.net/brief-biography/] artist, writer and curator; and hosted by Agatha Gothe-Snape, Powerhouse Artistic Associate and co-curator of Eucalyptusdom.    Eucalyptusdom (11 October 2021 – 28 August 2022) is accompanied by a publication [https://shop.maas.museum/collections/eucalyptusdom/products/eucalyptusdom] which expands upon the research and creative output of the exhibition, showcasing more than 20 creative practitioners commissioned to produce new works in dialogue with 500+ objects from the Powerhouse Collection.  The series is programmed by Rebecca Gallo, produced by Ayeesha Ash and Cara Stewart, edited by Mara Schwerdtfeger, and sound designed by Jane Sheldon.

Identity

How do we tell stories through trees, and how do trees tell us their stories? When trees are viewed as kin rather than inanimate others, how might this change our understanding of our place in the world and our sense of identity?   Featuring Professor Brian Martin [https://www.monash.edu/mada/about-us/people/brian-martin], Bundjalung, Muruwari and Kamilaroi man and Director of Wominjeka Djeembana Indigenous Research Lab at Monash Art, Design and Architecture faculty; Charlotte Day [https://lens.monash.edu/@charlotte-day], Director at Monash University Museum of Art; Sophie Cunningham, [https://www.sophiecunningham.com/] writer, talker and teacher, and author of City of Trees; and hosted by Agatha Gothe-Snape, Powerhouse Artistic Associate and co-curator of Eucalyptusdom.    Eucalyptusdom (11 October 2021 – 28 August 2022) is accompanied by a publication [https://shop.maas.museum/collections/eucalyptusdom/products/eucalyptusdom] which expands upon the research and creative output of the exhibition, showcasing more than 20 creative practitioners commissioned to produce new works in dialogue with 500+ objects from the Powerhouse Collection.  The series is programmed by Rebecca Gallo, produced by Ayeesha Ash and Cara Stewart, edited by Mara Schwerdtfeger, and sound designed by Jane Sheldon.

Resistance/Resilience

What does traditional land management in our changing climate teach us about the vulnerability of eucalypts, and the significance of their survival?   Featuring Dean Nicolle [https://www.dn.com.au/dean-nicolle.html], founder and manager of Currency Creek Arboretum [https://dn.com.au/]; Oliver Costello, Bundjalung man and co-founder of Firesticks Alliance Indigenous Corporation [https://www.firesticks.org.au/]; and hosted by Agatha Gothe-Snape, Powerhouse Artistic Associate and co-curator of Eucalyptusdom.  Eucalyptusdom (11 October 2021 – 28 August 2022) is accompanied by a publication [https://shop.maas.museum/collections/eucalyptusdom/products/eucalyptusdom] which expands upon the research and creative output of the exhibition, showcasing more than 20 creative practitioners commissioned to produce new works in dialogue with 500+ objects from the Powerhouse Collection.  The series is programmed by Rebecca Gallo, produced by Ayeesha Ash and Cara Stewart, edited by Mara Schwerdtfeger, and sound designed by Jane Sheldon.

Vitality

When we speak of the vitality of plants, trees and knowledge, we are talking about the potency the ever-present power of Country. As Wiradjuri artist and poet Jazz Money has written, “no colonial intervention can alter the truth of Country”.   Featuring Zena Cumpston, Barkandji woman and researcher, writer, consultant and curator; Nici Cumpston [https://nicicumpston.com/], Barkandji woman and artist, curator, writer and educator; David Doyle, Barkandji man and artist; and hosted by Emily McDaniel, Wiradjuri woman of the Kalari Clan, Director, First Nations at the Powerhouse and and co-curator of Eucalyptusdom.  Eucalyptusdom (11 October 2021 – 28 August 2022) is accompanied by a publication [https://shop.maas.museum/collections/eucalyptusdom/products/eucalyptusdom] which expands upon the research and creative output of the exhibition, showcasing more than 20 creative practitioners commissioned to produce new works in dialogue with 500+ objects from the Powerhouse Collection.  The series is programmed by Rebecca Gallo, produced by Ayeesha Ash and Cara Stewart, edited by Mara Schwerdtfeger, and sound designed by Jane Sheldon.

Alchemy

Alchemy is at once a medieval science, a speculative philosophy, a force that transforms matter in mysterious ways, and a metaphor for transformation. We look at how plants and trees become forces for symbolic and material transformation in Western art and culture.    Featuring Gina Buenfeld-Murley, curator at Camden Art Centre [https://camdenartcentre.org/]; Janet Laurence [http://www.janetlaurence.com/], contemporary Australian artist; and hosted by Agatha Gothe-Snape, Powerhouse Artistic Associate and co-curator of Eucalyptusdom.  Eucalyptusdom (11 October 2021 – 28 August 2022) is accompanied by a publication [https://shop.maas.museum/collections/eucalyptusdom/products/eucalyptusdom] which expands upon the research and creative output of the exhibition, showcasing more than 20 creative practitioners commissioned to produce new works in dialogue with 500+ objects from the Powerhouse Collection.  The series is programmed by Rebecca Gallo, produced by Ayeesha Ash and Cara Stewart, edited by Mara Schwerdtfeger, and sound designed by Jane Sheldon.