John Curtin Gallery will present exhibitions of significant new work by Yindjibarndi artist Alice Guiness and Dharawal Country-based Mai Nguyễn-Long, as part of Perth Festival 2025.
An elder and senior artist, Guiness paints the Burndud - a ceremonial site and story on Yindjibarndi Ngurra (Country) in northern Western Australia.
Each stroke of the Burndud circle tells a story and it is through her special connection Guiness shares these stories with the world.
Burndud Ground presents a broad survey of Burndud paintings, inviting reflection on Guiness' lived experience with painting, ceremonial dance and connection to Ngurra.
This major commission by Perth Festival is part of Boorloo Contemporary and produced by Juluwarlu Art Group.
Juluwarlu CEO Lorraine Coppin said it opened a new pathway for Guiness to explore mediums such as neon sculpture and immersive media installation in celebrating and sharing Yindjibarndi Ngurra through her painting and the cultural archive of the Juluwarlu Art Group.
Ms Coppin said the Perth Festival had given Yindjibarndi Nation – through Juluwarlu – a stage to showcase who they are as an arts and culture centre and to keep the visual practices of significant stories alive.
"Art is a human creativity - and it matters when we want to make sense of life, Mum (Alice) is desperately helping us to make sense of her life. This is how she is vital in expressing herself through her artwork: she is telling us her story, she uses her creativity practices to start this dialogue with us - when we start to listen to each other, that's when the healing happens." Ms Coppin said.
John Curtin Gallery Director, Associate Professor Susanna Castleden, said the Gallery has a long-standing commitment to sharing First Nations voices and cultural expression.
"We are delighted to be showcasing this ambitious project with Alice Guiness and Juluwarlu as part of the Boorloo Contemporary program supported by Wesfarmers," Associate Professor Castleden said.
"Through immersive, light-filled installations and dramatic visual rhythms, Burndud Ground is a joyful celebration of tradition, connection and movement."
Mai Nguyễn-Long's installation Doba Nation features numerous hand-formed ceramic sculptures arranged on site - including the distinctive Vomit Girl sculptures - which first emerged from the artist's sense of voicelessness and personal and cultural erasure.
The installation acts to reconcile the artist's personal experience of collective trauma due to displacement and invites audiences to interrogate the history of their own identity.
Ms Nguyễn-Long's Doba works borrow from the southern Vietnamese spiritual motifs of her father's birthplace, merged with folkloric strategies learned from northern đình wood carvings and personalised symbology.
Curator Lia McKnight said Ms Nguyễn-Long's new body of work is a powerful exploration of identity, trauma and colonisation through a very personal lens.
"She has used the transformative potential of clay to stunning effect, creating a mesmeric installation of darkly playful ceramic figures and forms," Ms McKnight said.
Visitors are also welcomed to Carrolup Kattidj Nagar (Peaceful Quiet Reflection), which is opening alongside the exhibitions and features a selection of artworks from the Herbert Mayer Collection of Carrolup Artwork.
John Curtin Gallery's Perth Festival exhibitions have been made possible with the support of Lotterywest, Perth Festival, Wesfarmers Arts, Juluwarlu Art Group, The Department of Local Government Sport and Cultural Industries, and Michael Reid Galleries.
The exhibitions will be open to the public from February 7 to April 17, entry is free.
Visit the John Curtin Gallery website for more information.
