Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery is set to reopen later this month with a new exhibition, Sustaining the art of practice on display in the renovated gallery.

A series of refurbishments have restored light and access through the original cruciform construction and enhanced the entry and retail space.  The works also enabled an increased exhibition space for the display of a selection of works from The University of Western Australia’s Cruthers Collection of Women’s Art. 

Sustaining the art of practice draws on works from Cruthers Collection of Women’s Art to reveal links between artists and the communities and environments that support their practice.   

Curated by Lee Kinsella, the exhibition is an opportunity to consider relationships including the legacy of family, art historical precedents, community, landscape and Country. 

“Artists are engaged in swirling social relationships and part of communities that are vibrant and alive in the expression of culture - art, performance, music, poetry,” Ms Kinsella said.  

The exhibition will proffer portraits as a visual link to give viewers an insight into the individuals who are important to artists Angela Stewart and Ruth Tuck.  Groupings of newly acquired works that are the legacy of a friendship between Maria Kozic and Sally Jackson in Melbourne through the 1980s and into the early 90s will be on display.  

A newly commissioned video installation by Badimia and Yued artist Amanda Bell, Raquel Ormella’s hand-made banners, Lydia Young’s photography of Ngaanyatjarra lands and Perth-based artist Jody Quackenbush’s textile creations also feature in the exhibition. Other artists include Barbara Haddy, Marcelle Riley and Nalda Searles.

Professor Helen Grace’s photographic series Christmas dinner, 1979, documents the days of preparation and invisible labour performed by women in the family, as led by the matriarch on the family farm. Professor Grace’s photographic series are exhibited alongside the work of Narelle Jubelin and Margaret Morgan – artist friends and colleagues who feature in her private photographic records.  

Professor Grace will open the exhibition and present a talk in the gallery on Saturday 25 June, and has contributed to the catalogue that features commissioned essays which trace relationships, respect and reciprocity.  The exhibition catalogue will be launched at the opening on Friday 24 June.  

The exhibition, From the Cruthers Collection of Women’s Art continues in season 2, featuring a range of portraits from the collection alongside paintings by Susan Norrie. The Gallery reopens on 25 June 2022 and Sustaining the art of practice runs until August 20.  The Gallery is open Tuesdays to Saturdays, 12pm to 5pm, and admission is free.  For more information, visit the LWAG website.