The Queensland Art Gallery │Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) kicks off 2019 with ‘The 9th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art’ (APT9) showing across both Gallery sites until 28 April, then solo exhibitions celebrating the work of leading Australian artists Goobalathaldin Dick Roughsey, Ben Quilty, Margaret Olley, Jon Molvig and Shirley Macnamara.

Arts Minister Leeanne Enoch said the Queensland Government’s investment in QAGOMA would continue to deliver outstanding results for Queensland in 2019.

'Last year QAGOMA reclaimed its position as the second most visited gallery in Australia,' Minister Enoch said.

'Combined onsite attendance at the Queensland Art Gallery and GOMA position it as the 27th most visited art museum in the world.'

'QAGOMA’s outstanding 2019 program of high profile exhibitions is certain to excite visitors and make a valued contribution to Queensland’s cultural tourism,' she said.

QAGOMA Director Chris Saines CNZM said the Gallery’s 2019 program would present some of the most exciting new developments in contemporary art commencing with APT9, with its emphasis on Australia, Asia and the Pacific.

‘APT9, the ninth chapter in the Gallery’s flagship exhibition series, profiles the current work of more than 80 senior, mid-career and emerging artists from countries including China, India, Iran, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Micronesia and Australia,’ Mr Saines said.

‘Following the summer of APT9, we look ahead to solo exhibitions at QAG and GOMA that explore in depth both much-loved Australian artists and some lesser-known, but no less significant, names.’

From 30 March to 18 August, ‘Goobalathaldin Dick Roughsey: Stories of This Land’ opens at QAG, tracing the seminal role Roughsey (Lardil people c.1920-85) played in transitioning traditional Aboriginal art from Mornington Island into a contemporary practice.

‘Queensland artist Dick Roughsey is a legendary figure in Aboriginal art and he is well known for his children’s picture books, The Rainbow Serpent 1975 and The Giant Devil Dingo 1973,’ Mr Saines said.

‘Jointly curated by QAGOMA and Cairns Art Gallery, ‘Stories of This Land’ features many of the artist’s key early bark paintings, oil paintings of life on Mornington Island, original illustrations and archival material.’

‘Margaret Olley: A Generous Life’ will open exclusively at GOMA from 15 June until 20 October offering audiences an in-depth examination of Olley’s formative career in Brisbane, her artistic influences and legacy.

‘We’re thrilled to be presenting this major Olley exhibition at the same time as ‘Quilty’, the first major survey of one of Australia’s most acclaimed contemporary artists, and a close friend of Margaret Olley,’ Mr Saines said.

‘A Generous Life’ is proudly supported by Principal Benefactor, the Margaret Olley Art Trust. The exhibition reveals a deeply charismatic figure, mentor and friend, who exerted an enduring influence.

Developed by the Art Gallery of South Australia, ‘Quilty’ will be on display at GOMA from 29 June until 13 October. It includes works inspired by the artist’s visits to Lebanon, Lesbos and Serbia with Australian author Richard Flanagan, numerous revisions of the Australian landscape, and raw, intimate portraits of the artist himself, as well as his family and friends.

‘John Molvig: Maverick’, the first major survey of works by the late Queensland artist in forty years, opens at QAG from 14 September 2019 to 2 February 2020.

John Molvig (1923-1970) spent the greater part of his productive life in Brisbane where he dominated
the art scene from the mid-50s through the 60s. He was a charismatic teacher with an uncompromising commitment to painting, and he inspired and influenced many other Queensland artists.

Both volatile and rebellious, John Molvig’s work is characterised by its eclecticism and radical shifts in style as evident in key works in the exhibition such as Self‑portrait 1956 and A twilight of women 1957 both in the QAGOMA collection and Primordia 1956 from the National Gallery of Australia’s collection.

From 21 September 2019 until 1 March 2020 a solo exhibition highlighting the work of the senior Queensland artist Shirley Macnamara opens at QAG. Featuring sculptural objects crafted from Macnamara’s signature use of the spinifex plant and its runner roots, the exhibition captures the full span of the artist’s practice from 1997 to the present.

From January 2019 through to early 2021 QAGOMA will tour Boss Drovers 1996-2014, an installation of 200 drawings by senior Queensland contemporary artist Robert MacPherson, derived from the much larger body of work created by the artist over two decades. Boss Drovers 1996-2014 will tour to 12 regional venues including Miles, Mackay, Gympie and Mt Isa.

‘QAGOMA is delighted to make this significant work from the Collection available to audiences throughout the state, in conjunction with a digital interactive that allows viewers to investigate Robert MacPherson’s major work in its entirety,’ Mr Saines said.

QAGOMA 2019 Program Highlights include:

'The 9th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art' (APT9) (24 November 2018 to 28 April 2019).

‘Goobalathaldin Dick Roughsey: Stories of This Land’ (30 March to 18 August, 2019).

‘Margaret Olley: A Generous Life’ (15 June to 20 October).

‘Quilty’ (29 June to 13 October, 2019).

‘Jon Molvig: Maverick’ (14 September 2019 to 2 February 2020).

‘Shirley Macnamara’ (21 September 2019 to 1 March 2020).

‘Boss Drovers 1996-2014 on tour’ (2019 to 2021).

For more information on these and other QAGOMA programs visit qagoma.qld.gov.au