In this edition we feature Ever Present: First Peoples Art of Australia at the Art Gallery of WA, a stunning coverage of early and contemporary Aboriginal art, not just from Western Australia, but from across the nation. Years in the making, the exhibition is drawn from the collections of the National Gallery in Canberra and Wesfarmers. The show was pulled together remotely by NGV Curator of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Tina Baum, together with AGWA staff while the WA border remained closed.

We take a look at the 2022 Perth Festival Visual Arts Program and how the theme of Wardan (ocean) has filtered through to featured exhibitions via an interview with Gemma Weston, Festival Visual Arts Program Associate. Though the Festival shows feature many Aboriginal artists this year, in a departure from the 2021 program which focused on local artists, some eastern states artists are included along with a trickling of internationals.

Laetitia Wilson, curator of Festival show Strangers on the Shore at Holmes à Court Gallery in West Perth, fleshes out the concept of the exhibition and how artists have sought to rebalance the history of arrivals to our coast.

Annette Peterson visited Fremantle Arts Centre to speak to Glenn Iseger-Pilkington, curator of Undertow, also included the Festival, the multi-layered show reflecting what is often not seen but felt.

We spoke with Paul Chamberlain, Chair of Arts Impact WA, an enthusiastic group of philanthropists intent on making a difference in the arts with $100,000 grants, and lastly we cover Alchemy at There-Is by Melbourne-based, WA fan Sonia Payes.           

Lyn Di Ciero, Editor