In search of some cultural inspiration, or an escape from our summer city’s crowded beaches? While most commercial galleries close their doors throughout January, we recommend a viewing of the following exhibitions and installations.
Up Late with the Greats
If you haven’t made it over to the Art Gallery of NSW for their summer blockbuster exhibition, The Greats – Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland, an afterwork expedition may be your best bet.
Throughout January, the gallery will be open until 10pm on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings with a series of extra events that will make the trip all the more worth while. The exhibition in itself is extraordinary – a neat collection of Botticelli, Leonardo, Titian, Monet and more, in a rare, intimate setting that allows you to get up close and breath in works that might otherwise be totally swallowed in a larger museum. At Up Late with the Greats, you’ll be able to meander through the exhibition, as well as listen to members of the Brandenburg Orchestra play music inspired by the collection, participate in a sketching class, or enjoy locally crafted beer from Young Henry’s.
January 6 – 29, 2016 6 – 10pm on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday Art Gallery of NSW
El Anatsui: Five Decades
Fresh from winning the Gold Lion at the 2015 Venice Biennale, this is Ghanaian artist El Anatsui’s first major exhibition in Australia, spanning his practice from 1970 until now. Presented as part of the Sydney Festival program, El Anatsui: Five Decades features more than 30 of the artist’s elaborate, wilted wall sculptures, as well as woodcarvings, paintings and ceramics. Each piece is formed from recycled materials – tin boxes and bottle caps, wood and aluminum printing plates.
January 7 to March 6, 2016 10am–6pm daily Carriagworks
Chen Qiulin: One Hundred Names
One Hundred Surnames in Tofu is an ongoing installation piece by celebrated Chinese artist Chen Qiulin, involving 100 common Chinese family names carved out in tofu, and left to slowly decay over a period of weeks. As part of a greater survey of the artist’s work to date, 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art has commissioned a new iteration of Qiulin’s tofu lettering entitled One Hundred Names for Kwong Wah Chong, which will commemorate Haymarket and Sydney’s first Chinese owned and operated shopfront, Kwong Wah Chong.
January 16 to February 27, 2016 Tue to Sat 11am–6pm 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art
