Justene Williams Once We Were Mudskippers
Justene Williams, Australia b.1970; (l-r) A Metal Cry (performance still, Carriageworks, Sydney) 2017; Courtesy: The artist, The Commercial, Sydney, and Anna Schwartz Gallery, Melbourne; Photograph: Ashley Barber / Victory Over the Sun (performance still, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra) 2016; Collection: National Gallery of Australia / © Justene Williams / View full image
When
3 Oct 2026 – 7 Mar 2027
Where
Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery 3 (Kenneth and Yasuko Myer Gallery) & Gallery 4
Admission
Free
About
Justene Williams is one of Australia’s leading contemporary artists. ‘Once We Were Mudskippers’ profiles the diversity of the artists’ three-decade long practice and shows the vivacity of her recent work.
In an amalgamation of video, performance and installation, Williams creates a viewing experience through an absurdist, high energy, mash up of art history and pop-culture intertwined with personal narratives. Suburbia features heavily in Williams’ works, encapsulating the wear and tear on the Australian dream while also celebrating the textural qualities found in the materials and objects in the urban fabric.
Justene Williams, Australia b.1970 / Moonwalking Mumma 2024 / Closed cell foam, aluminium rod, fibreglass and spray putty / 220 x 80 x 250cm / © Justene Williams / Courtesy: The artist and Anna Schwartz Gallery, Melbourne / View full image
Justene Williams, Australia b.1970 / She Has No Beginning Or End (installation view, Sarah Cottier Gallery) 2022 / © Justene Williams / Courtesy: The artist, The Commercial, Sydney, and Anna Schwartz Gallery, Melbourne / View full image
Justene Williams, Australia b.1970 / The Worker 2016 / Felt, wadding, cotton Lycra, plastic, clips / Victory over the Sun, 20th Biennale of Sydney, 2016 / © Justene Williams / Courtesy: Sarah Cottier Gallery / View full image
