Fairy Tales: Cherished stories brought to life
Tarsem Singh, India/United States b.1961 / Production still from Mirror Mirror 2012 / 35mm, colour, Dolby Digital, 106 minutes, United States/Canada, English / Director: Tarsem Singh / Producers: Bernie Goldmann, Ryan Kavanaugh, Brett Ratner / Script: Marc Klein, Jason Keller, Melisa Wallack / Cinematographer: Brendan Galvin / Editors: Robert Duffy, Nick Moore / Cast: Julia Roberts, Lily Collins, Armie Hammer, Nathan Lane, Jordan Prentice, Mark Povinelli,
Joe Gnoffo, Danny Woodburn, Sebastian Saraceno, Martin Klebba, Ronald Lee Clark / © 2012 UV RML NL Assets LLC. / Photograph: Jan Thijs, 2011 / Image courtesy: Relativity Media / View full image
‘Fairy Tales’ brings the enchantment of cherished stories to life through visual art, design and film. In the exhibition artists, designers and filmmakers respond to the timeless allure of fairy tales in our major summer exhibition at Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA).
Henrique Oliveira, Brazil b.1973 / Corupira (detail) 2023, commissioned for ‘Fairy Tales’, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) Brisbane 2023 / Plywood, tapumes veneer and tree branches / © Henrique Oliveira / Photographs: C Callistemon © QAGOMA / View full image
Henrique Oliveira, Brazil b.1973 / Corupira (detail) 2023, commissioned for ‘Fairy Tales’, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) Brisbane 2023 / Plywood, tapumes veneer and tree branches / © Henrique Oliveira / Photographs: C Callistemon © QAGOMA / View full image
‘Fairy Tales’ is an exclusive-to-Queensland exhibition, presented across GOMA’s entire ground floor, featuring more than 100 works of art encompassing sculpture, installation, painting, photography, printmaking, paper cuts, animation, video art, augmented reality, film, props and costumes.
While fairy tales have changed form through different eras and societies, their themes have remained universally resonant. The ‘Fairy Tales’ exhibition transports you into the faraway land of magical stories that cast an enduring spell on adults and children alike.
DELVE DEEPER: Journey through the ‘Fairy Tales’ exhibition with our weekly series
Trulee Hall, United States b.1976 / Witch House (Umbilical Coven) 2023, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) Brisbane 2023 / Wood, papier-mache, resin, fabric, stuffing, fake fur, synthetic hair, altered sex dolls, synthetic polymer paint, spray-paint, found candle holders, cornucopia baskets, found ceramic cornucopia, found crystal balls, convex mirror, polymer clay, hardware, LED candles / 431.8 x 685.8 x 436.9cm / Courtesy: Trulee Hall / © Trulee Hall / Photograph: N Umek © QAGOMA / View full image
Patricia Piccinini, Australia b.1965 / Enchanted Field 2023 installed in ‘Fairy Tales’, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), Brisbane 2023, featuring (top left to right) Celestial Field 2021, Mushroom Ring 2021 and Shoeform (Tresses) 2019 / Selected sculptural works / Collection: Patricia Piccinini / © Patricia Piccinini / Photograph: J Ruckli © QAGOMA / View full image
Explore the classic archetypes of powerful witches, magical beasts, and spirited princesses while also looking at ideas of enchantment, transformation and caution and view artworks that unravel the visual motifs of the genre, from deep, dark woods to impossible shoes and regal gowns.
The first chapter of the exhibition, ‘Into the Woods’ explores metamorphosis, unpredictability and danger while the second, ‘Through the Looking Glass’ is filled with puppets, toys, clocks, twirling mushrooms and flying houses that draw on childhood imagination. ‘Ever After’, the final chapter, celebrates the myriad ways that love and relationships plays out in fairy tales, with a focus on the tropes of marriage in ‘Cinderella’ and ‘Snow White’.
Among the enchanting works on display are Brazilian artist Henrique Oliveira’s new commission Corupira 2023, which envelops you as you enter in a twisted forest fashioned from tree branches and salvaged timber (illustrated); Trulee Hall’s darkly theatrical Witch House (Umbilical Coven) 2023 (illustrated); ‘Douglas’, ‘Max’, and ‘Carol’ costumes from Spike Jonze’s 2009 fantasy drama film Where the Wild Things Are (illustrated); costumes and props from Jim Henson’s iconic musical fantasy film Labyrinth 1986; Patricia Piccinini’s Enchanted Field 2023, a dramatic canopy of approximately 3000 genetically modified blooms and sculptural works (illustrated); Carsten Höller’s interactive sculpture Flying Mushrooms 2015; ‘Alice’, ‘Mad Hatter’, and ‘Red Queen’ costumes from Tim Burton’s adventure fantasy film Alice in Wonderland 2010; Timothy Horn’s Mother-load 2008, a sumptuously embellished stagecoach created from crystallised rock sugar (illustrated), and Eiko Ishioka’s elaborate costumes for the 2012 fantasy comedy film Mirror Mirror (illustrated).
Spike Jonze (director), United States b.1969; Jim Henson’s Creature Shop (designer), United States est. 1979 / Costumes from Where the Wild Things Are 2009, installation view ‘Fairy Tales’, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) Brisbane 2023 / ‘Douglas’ animatronic costume: Synthetic fur, synthetic hide, synthetic feathers, acrylic, cotton, latex, foam, polystyrene, nylon, fibreglass, lycra, polyvinyl chloride, speakers, animatronic power cables, plugs, fans, gyrostabiliser, cameras, video monitor; 260 x 96.5 x 96.5cm / ‘Max’ costume: Synthetic fur, resin, plastic, metal, wire; 170 x 45.7 x 45.7cm / ‘Carol’ animatronic costume: Synthetic fur, synthetic hide, synthetic feathers, acrylic, cotton, latex, foam, polystyrene, nylon, lycra, polyvinyl chloride, speakers, animatronic power cables, plugs, fans, gyrostabiliser, cameras, video monitor; 267 x 119.5 x 99cm / Collection: Warner Brothers Archives, Los Angeles / © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved / Photograph: C Callistemon © QAGOMA / View full image
Timothy Horn, Australia/United States b.1964 / Mother-load 2008, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) Brisbane 2023 / Crystalised rock sugar, plywood, steel / Courtesy: Timothy Horn / © Timothy Horn / Photograph: N Umek © QAGOMA / View full image
Tarsem Singh (director), India/United States b.1961 / Eiko Ishioka (designer), Japan 1938–2012 / Carelli Costumes (costumier), United States est. 1982 /‘Cream wedding dress’ costume worn by Julia Roberts as ‘Queen Clementianna’ in Mirror Mirror (2012) installed in ‘Fairy Tales’, Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), Brisbane 2023 / Duchess silk satin, Swarovski crystals / Collection: The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Los Angeles / Photograph: N Umek © QAGOMA / View full image
Tarsem Singh, India/United States b.1961 / Production still from Mirror Mirror 2012 / 35mm, colour, Dolby Digital, 106 minutes, United States/Canada, English / Director: Tarsem Singh / Producers: Bernie Goldmann, Ryan Kavanaugh, Brett Ratner / Script: Marc Klein, Jason Keller, Melisa Wallack / Cinematographer: Brendan Galvin / Editors: Robert Duffy, Nick Moore / Cast: Julia Roberts, Lily Collins, Armie Hammer, Nathan Lane, Jordan Prentice, Mark Povinelli, Joe Gnoffo, Danny Woodburn, Sebastian Saraceno, Martin Klebba, Ronald Lee Clark / © 2012 UV RML NL Assets LLC. / Photograph: Jan Thijs / Image courtesy: Relativity Media / View full image
Fairy Tales Cinema
Fairy tales have always been a means of speaking truth to power; challenging injustice and providing hope. The ‘Fairy Tales Cinema: Truth, Power and Enchantment’ free film program presented in conjunction with the exhibition ‘Fairy Tales’ presents beloved classics alongside contemporary retellings and highlights how filmmakers have innovated on older stories to resonate in different times and contexts.
Production still from La Belle et la Bête (Beauty and the Beast) 1946 / 35mm, black and white, mono, 96 minutes, France, French (English subtitles) / Director/script: Jean Cocteau, France 1889–1963; Cinematographer: Henri Alekan; Editor: Claude Iberia / Cast: Jean Marais, Josette Day / Image courtesy: Société nouvelle de distribution (SND), Paris / © Société nouvelle de distribution (SND) / 1996–98 AccuSoft Inc. All Rights Reserved / View full image
Production still from The Adventures of Prince Achmed 1926 / Director: Lotte Reiniger / Image courtesy: British Film Institute, London / View full image
Guillermo del Toro, Mexico b.1964 / Production still from El laberinto del fauno (Pan’s Labyrinth) 2006 / 35mm, colour, Dolby Digital, 118 minutes, Mexico/Spain, Spanish (English subtitles) / Director/script: Guillermo del Toro / Producers: Alvaro Augustin, Alfonso Cuaron, Guillermo del Toro, Bertha Navarro, Frida Torresblanco / Cinematographer: Guillermo
Navarro / Editor: Bernat Vilaplana / Cast: Ivana Baquero, Sergi Lopez, Maribel Verdu, Doug Jones / © Umbrella Entertainment / View full image
The ‘Fairy Tales’ exhibition is at Brisbane’s Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), Australia from 2 December 2023 until 28 April 2024.
‘Fairy Tales Cinema: Truth, Power and Enchantment‘ presented in conjunction with GOMA’s blockbuster summer exhibition screens at the Australian Cinémathèque, GOMA from 2 December 2023 until 28 April 2024.
The major publication ‘Fairy Tales in Art and Film’ available at the QAGOMA Store and online explores how fairy tales have held our fascination for centuries through art and culture.
‘Fairy Tales’ merchandise available at the GOMA exhibition shop or online. / View full image
The Australian Cinémathèque
The Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) is the only Australian art gallery with purpose-built facilities dedicated to film and the moving image. The Australian Cinémathèque at GOMA provides an ongoing program of film and video that you’re unlikely to see elsewhere, offering a rich and diverse experience of the moving image, showcasing the work of influential filmmakers and international cinema, rare 35mm prints, recent restorations and silent films with live musical accompaniment by local musicians or on the Gallery’s Wurlitzer organ originally installed in Brisbane’s Regent Theatre in November 1929.
Featured image: Tarsem Singh, India/United States b.1961 / Production still from Mirror Mirror 2012 / 35mm, colour, Dolby Digital, 106 minutes, United States/Canada, English / Director: Tarsem Singh / Producers: Bernie Goldmann, Ryan Kavanaugh, Brett Ratner / Script: Marc Klein, Jason Keller, Melisa Wallack / Cinematographer: Brendan Galvin / Editors: Robert Duffy, Nick Moore / Cast: Julia Roberts, Lily Collins, Armie Hammer, Nathan Lane, Jordan Prentice, Mark Povinelli, Joe Gnoffo, Danny Woodburn, Sebastian Saraceno, Martin Klebba, Ronald Lee Clark / © 2012 UV RML NL Assets LLC. / Photograph: Jan Thijs, 2011 / Image courtesy: Relativity Media