The death mask of the Australian Bushranger Ned Kelly will be among the artifacts featured in the Death Love Art exhibition at the Shoalhaven Regional Gallery.
At the heart of this major exhibition is a compelling exploration of the intersection between death, love, and the artistic expression that binds them.
It will delve into the myriad ways in which artists and communities have grappled with the profound concepts of death and love throughout history.
Through diverse mediums such as painting, sculpture, literature, and multimedia installations, the exhibition demonstrates how art has been a way of coping with the complexities of loss, love, and life itself.
From the haunting beauty of 1st Century BC Egyptian funerary portraits, to Ned Kelly’s death mask and the death mask of another infamous Australian bushranger Captain Moonlight, the exhibition presents a diverse range of works that illuminate the complexity of human emotions in the face of death.
Death Love Art explores how people mourn and remember, and how artists respond to the emotional devastation of love halted by death. Works of art explore the power of love to endure beyond death, as well as those that explore the devastation that comes with loss.
Through the lens of art, the exhibition invites us to consider how love and loss shape our lives and the ways in which we remember those who have passed on.
Death Love Art has been curated by Max Dingle OAM in conjunction with Shoalhaven Gallery Manager Bronwyn Coulston.
It features works borrowed from a range of institutions including the National Gallery of Victoria, MCA, Heide Museum of Modern Art and National Museum of Australia, and from artists’ private collections.
The exhibition runs from Saturday December 9 until February 3 2024.
