26 November 2007
During the 1970s and early 1980s artists at the Northern Territory community of Papunya created a body of work which transformed understandings of Aboriginal art. Papunya Painting: Out of the Desert, a free exhibition at the National Museum of Australia, explores the stories behind the canvas.
The National Museum of Australia holds one of the most significant collections of 1970s Papunya Tula canvases in the world. The exhibition is predominantly drawn from this collection and features more than 40 canvases; many have never been publicly displayed.
The exhibition is curated by Professor Vivien Johnson, an eminent scholar of Australian Indigenous art and an expert on the Papunya Tula movement.
Some of the Papunya artists have travelled to Canberra for the opening of the exhibition and will attend the media launch.
WHAT: Papunya Painting media launch
WHEN: 11.30am, Tuesday November 27, 2007
WHERE: National Museum of Australia
Papunya Painting: Out of the Desert opens to the public on Wednesday November 28, 2007 and will be on display at the National Museum of Australia until Sunday February 3, 2008. For more information visit www.nma.gov.au
For interviews, images and more information please contact Dennis Grant on 02 6208 5351, 0409 916 481; Caroline Vero on 02 6208 5338, 0438 620 710 or media@nma.gov.au