An exhibition surveying a decade of work by contemporary Australian artist Peter Hennessey will open at The University of Queensland Art Museum on 14 March.
Hennessey – a trained architect with a background in new media – has established an international profile for physically imposing sculptures including life-sized ‘re-enactments’ of space probes, lunar rovers and GPS technology.
Peter Hennessey: Making it real curator Samantha Littley said Hennessey’s reconstructions of technically complex and often large objects would leave visitors spellbound.
“Peter Hennessey’s sculptures are vessels that communicate the ideas that preoccupy him, ideas that revolve around social justice and the political systems that dominate our lives,” Ms Littley said.
“He’s interested in our quest for knowledge, the limits we face in pursuing it, and in bridging the gap between things we ‘see’ virtually and those that we are able to experience.
“Peter creates structures that often elude us because of our distance from them, both literally and metaphorically.
“By giving these objects three-dimensional form, Peter helps us to experience and explore their symbolism, all the while acknowledging they are no more than stand-ins for the real thing.”
Hennessey said the experience of working on the exhibition at UQ Art Museum was a productive process that pushed his practice in new directions.
“Making it real feels like an important milestone and an opportunity to reflect, but I’m also really pleased that it’s not solely focussed on looking back,” Hennessey said.
“In recent months I’ve had access to researchers, students and academics across UQ who’ve been so generous in sharing their time and research, and I’m excited that works in the exhibition will represent this time at the University, as well as my practice as a whole.”
The exhibition will include Hennessey’s most significant sculptures, including My Humvee (Inversion therapy) 2008 from the UQ Art Collection, which Hennessey describes as one of his personal favourites.
Hennessey’s large-scale sculptures will be complemented by videos, prints and scale models of works such as My Ikara 2004, as well as new work from a residency at UQ’s Centre for Hypersonics, internationally renowned for its aerodynamics research.
Peter Hennessey: Making it real will open at UQ Art Museum on 14 March and run until 12 July.
Public program:
Friday 13 March 5 -6pm, before the opening, join Peter Hennessey for an artist talk with exhibition curator Samantha Littley at the UQ Art Museum.
Wednesday 1 April 6pm
Peter Hennessey will discuss his recent residency at UQ’s Centre for Hypersonics with UQ’s HyShot Group leader Professor Michael Smart, in a session chaired by Dr Allison Holland at UQ Art Museum.
Download images for print and web: here
Media: Sonia Uranishi, +61 409 387 623, sonia@soniauranishicommunication.com or Sebastian Moody, +61 7 3346 8761, s.moody@uq.edu.au.
