Melbourne
exhibitions :: posted on April 22nd, 2008
Arriving in Melbourne it was a bus ride into the city then a walk along Spencer street to cross the Yarra river and head along the Promenade to the National Gallery of Victoria. The view from the Spencer street bridge takes in the city and the south bank, where I was heading. I don’t think I would be fishing in this river, but to my surprise I saw people doing just that on the way in on the bus! EEeek!
Anyway, the promenade is packed with restaurant and cafes and relaxed people , which was a good start to the day.
The National Gallery of Victoria is definitely not what I would call a building to fall in love with. Converted to suit the needs of a growing gallery, it is a very austere sort of building and the interior is a maze of spaces within the shell forming isolated exhibitions rooms. I guess this was the aim, but it was a bit tricky to find everything for a first time gallery visitor.
I did manage to find the Black in Fashion, Mourning to Night exhibition, which was quite interesting. With items of clothing from the mid-nineteenth century to contemporary designs the garments and accessories told a story of history that really captured the imagination. The NGV has all sorts of events in black to go with the show.
The Antony Gormley sculptures from his Inside Australia project are absolutely captivating as they stand at the entrance level of the gallery. I think the sculptures talk for themselves really - just fabulous!
Then of course there was Otto Dix. It was just excellent to see these works in the flesh. The prints depict scenes from WW1 with a kind of investigation about the intensity of emotional control, fear and graphic reality of the implications of men fighting, dying and surviving in such adverse conditions that it is a wonder that anyone did survive. But he did. Otto Dix survived, with his sketches that he later developed into prints using etching, drypoint and aquatint methods to record and reveal.
The exhibition is at the National Gallery of Victoria until August 10, then it moves to New South Wales and finally Queensland. Well worth checking out.
