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ABOUT
ilovebrokenhill.com , was first published on 8 December 2011 by Jane Deany. My blog is all about the famous outback Australian National Heritage Listed City named Broken Hill, located in the state of New South Wales. I first visited #BrokenHill in 2002 and have returned many times since then. ilovebrokenhill.com will help you discover what's great about this historic mining city, where in the mid 1880's the line of lode, a rich ore body of silver, lead and zinc was found. You will find stories about anything related to Broken Hill.

Thursday 29 March 2012

Broken Hill Regional Art Gallery Exhibition "Kurnu Paakantyi Stories" by Badger Bates

Art Scene
Well known indigenous artist Badger (William Brian) Bates is currently exhibiting at the Broken  Hill  Regional  Art  Gallery.  The  exhibition  “Kurnu  Paakantyi  Stories”  will  run  from 10 March – 22 April 2012.

Badger was born in Wilcannia.  He is a carver, sculptor, printmaker and educator.  He has exhibited extensively in both Sydney and regional NSW.  His work can be found in the collection of the Art Gallery of NSW.  His work is influenced by his deep attachment to the Darling River (Paaka).  He works in emu egg and stone carving, linoprint, wood and metalwork and his art reflects the landforms, animals, plants, motifs and stories of Paakantji land.
Interior Broken Hill Regional Art Gallery
The Regional Art Gallery’s “blurb” about the exhibition is as follows -

Kurnu Paakantyi artist Badger Bates offers a selection of his recent linocut prints, and wood, metal and found object sculptures.  The exhibition focuses on his life as a child in the 1950’s travelling the ancient routes along the western rivers with his grandmother, the remarkable matriarch Granny Moysey. Badger’s art re-tells the stories and events from this period, informing us about the social context of the environment, humanizing the landscape and its plants and animals, and providing continuity between the creators, the ancestors and the present day occupants.  This exhibition is the culmination of a project funded by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, which involved Badger re-travelling the routes he took with Granny Moysey, and creating an oral and visual record of the Kurnu Paakantyi world.

Badger is a finalist in the 2011 NSW Indigenous Art Prize, and recent exhibitions include Menagerie (Objects Gallery & Australian Museum), In The Balance: Art for a Changing World (Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney), People of the First Sunrise, Indigenous Art from Eastern Australia (Glasshouse Regional Gallery). Water in a Dry Land (Albury Regional Gallery), Three Mining Territories, One Common Culture (Riotino, Spain), Packsaddle Exhibition (NERAM, Armidale).

I really enjoyed the exhibition.

Cheers, Jane D