Gordon Hookey: A MURRIALITY

‘A MURRIALITY’ is the first survey of renowned Waanyi artist Gordon Hookey, charting three decades of practice where artmaking and activism fuse.

Gordon Hookey’s work is best known for its biting satire of Australian culture and politics, its witty critique of racism, and an exploration of oral and image-based history-making traditions. Across sculpture, printmaking, video, and large-scale painting, ‘A MURRIALITY’ presents perspectives on historical and contemporary issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Through the lens of Hookey’s lived experience as a Murri person, this includes legal injustices, international conflict, cultural representations, and language.

The exhibition features a significant new commission supported by the UNSW Galleries Commissioners Circle that draw inspiration from Hookey’s vast collection of political posters and continues his acclaimed series of protest banners. Made for use in the public realm at Invasion Day marches and rallies recognising Aboriginal resistance fighter Dundalli, Hookey’s banners provide timely socio-political commentary while also imagining a truly empowered Indigenous future.

—

Curators: José Da Silva & Liz Nowell

Developed in partnership with the Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane and presented with the support of the Australia Council for the Arts, Gordon Darling Foundation, IMA Commissioners Circle and UNSW Commissioners Circle. A naal tour begins in 2023, supported by the Australian Government’s Visions of Australia program.

EXHIBITION LABELS 

Touring Venues

Institute of Modern Art, QLD
 January – 13 March 2022

Caboolture Regional Gallery, QLD
11 March – 29 April 2023

Hervey Bay Regional Gallery, QLD
9 June – 20 August 2023

Cairns Art Gallery, QLD
16 December 2023 – 18 February 2024

Cloncurry Gallery, QLD
18 March – 6 July 2024

Bega Regional Gallery, NSW
9 August – 13 October 2024

Perth Institute of Contemporary Art, WA
1 November 2024 – 11 January 2025

Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, NSW
14 February – 30 March 2025

Plimsoll Gallery/ UTAS, TAS
5 July –  30 August 2025

Lismore Regional Gallery, NSW
1 September – 1 December 2025

 

 

Installation view, ‘Gordon Hookey: A MURRIALITY’, Hervey Bay Regional Gallery, 2023. Photography: Llewellyn Millhouse. © Gordon Allan Hookey/Copyright Agency, 2023.

Banner: Gordon Hookey, Murriland! #1 2015–17, Oil on canvas. Installation view, ‘Gordon Hookey: A MURRIALITY’, UNSW Galleries, 2022. Photography: Jacquie Manning. © Gordon Allan Hookey/Copyright Agency, 2022