If you visit the UQ Art Museum in the coming months, beware of the tombstone out front.
Ironically named Happy Ending, the work by the artist Nell is an appropriate introduction to neo goth: back in black, which opened free to the public on July 26 and is one of the largest and most ambitious art exhibitions ever staged by the University.
Incorporating 170 works from 60 contemporary artists, the show also bleeds into Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley, where retailer Jean Brown has decked its window front with a selection of Gothic-inspired fashion.
Museum Director Nick Mitzevich said the timing of the exhibition reflected our growing fascination with the dark and otherworldly.
“Mainstream culture has really embraced the motifs of the Goth era recently, particularly images of mortality, and we thought it was an ideal time to curate an exhibition about this phenomena,” Mr Mitzevich said.
“Street culture is such a potent force within our society and young people are very much involved in music, fashion, film and literature and, for me, it was a perfect fit.”
Exhibition curator and UQ graduate Alison Kubler said she crossed the country to assemble the exhibition and was surprised by the scope and strength of Gothic-themed pieces being produced by artists.
Contributors to neo goth include Venice Biennale representative Shaun Gladwell, photo-artist Rosemary Laing and winner of the University’s inaugural National Artists Self-Portrait Prize Ben Quilty, with a number of pieces specially created for the exhibition.
The exhibition also features for the first time in Queensland the work of 2008 Archibald Prize winner, Del Kathryn Barton.
Mr Mitzevich said the Gothic had proved popular for centuries and enjoyed regular resurrections, as seen in recent "emo" and punk fashion and music.
“The show is fun and engaging, but there’s also an underbelly to it which does pose the question: why is mortality and the iconography associated with it so widespread in society today?” he said.
“We really want people from all walks of life to come along to enjoy the exhibition and take something from it.”
Both floors of the museum are filled with sculpture, film, photography, painting and jewellery during the exhibition, with a weekend of free talks by several of the artists, the curator and catalogue authors taking place on July 26-27.
“There’s a little bit of Goth in us all, and I think everyone at some time thinks about mortality and their place in the world and this exhibition explores that in many different ways,” Mr Mitzevich said.
neo goth: back in black runs at the UQ Art Museum, St Lucia until September 21. The exhibition is open from 10am – 4pm daily with parking free on weekends.
An 88-page illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition, with essays by Ms Kubler, Ashley Crawford, Louise Martin-Chew and Lisa Slade.
Media: Nick Mitzevich (0434 361 383, 07 3365 3046, n.mitzevich@uq.edu.au), Alison Kubler (0412 804 137, alisonkubler@gmail.com), or Cameron Pegg at UQ Communications (07 3365 2049, c.pegg@uq.edu.au)
** To download high resolution neo goth images visit http://omc.uq.edu.au/images/neogoth/
