IF you live in Canberra, the word MAMA may conjure up MusicACT’s music awards, the MAMAs, but if you travel south to Albury, everyone knows the acronym stands for MAMA, the Murray Art Museum Albury.
Dean St Albury aspect – old and new
Excitement is mounting ahead of its September opening and in the lead up, “CityNews” is pleased to have been contacted by the MAMA team with news of several positions vacant, outline below.
Fundraising for MAMA in Albury – a community effort
Back in late May, we attended a fundraiser at the adjoining Albury Entertainment Centre on QEII Square, where local art-lovers dressed up to bid for goods, including tickets to the AFL, works by local artists and impressions of celebs painted on the spot by entertainer and ‘speed-painter’, Brad Blaze. On hand for the event were art-lovers, community leaders and donors to the gallery, not least Melbourne collector Michael Moon, whose recent donation of 19 significant works has increased the representation of Aboriginal artists and significant Australian artists in MAMA’s collection.
A $10.5M redevelopment of the former Albury Regional Art Gallery designed by Sydney architects NBRS and Partners, the Museum is seen as one of NSW’s largest and best-equipped exhibition spaces outside Sydney, a new home for modern art that will reposition Albury as a major cultural destination, also reawakening the Murray region.
Jacqui Hemsley is the livewire newish director. Formerly Albury City’s group leader of cultural services, Hemsley has had previous directorial roles at galleries in New Zealand, Broken Hill and Gippsland.
Impression of the new foyer
To her, the new title of ‘museum’ is apposite, reflecting the wider purposes of collecting, commissioning new work and spearheading education and through it, the development of the community.
Excitement is the name of the game and while she’s happy to talk up the state-of-the-art facilities, it’s the quirkier aspects that really energise her, like, like the 24-hour art ‘skin’ allowing the exterior to show lighting, projection and kinetic art, the ‘peephole discovery boxes’ everywhere, creating a sense of “accidental art”, and the more-than-18 public art commissions with a value of $280,000.
Naturally Hemsley is happy to acknowledge the essential features of the redevelopment too—the collection storage area, the accessible loading dock and above all, the 10 flexible display spaces.
These include the contemporary galleries and a dedicated emerging artists’ gallery to showcase local talent. Most prominently, the two galleries on the ground floor will provide permanent exhibition spaces for the city’s 2400-strong art collection, which includes the Howard Daniel Gift, the Moon Gift, the collection of works by Sir Russell Drysdale (Albury was his home town), the 600-work contemporary photography collection, the Albury Art Prize collection, the John Nagel Bequest and The Circus Collection, based on the local Flying Fruit Fly Circus.
External side wall, old building visible
Hemsley and her team have planned an impressive a line-up of exhibitions to kick the Museum off. “Wiradjuri Ngurambanggu” will challenge perceptions of Aboriginal art by showcasing work from across Wiradjuri Country, including new commissions by five of Australia’s leading Wiradjuri artists: Lorraine Connelly-Northey, Jonathan Jones, Brook Andrew, Karla Dickens and Nicole Foreshew. Wiradjuri poet, artist and activist, Canberra’s Kerry Reed-Gilbert, will be writing for MAMA’s opening catalogue.
In “Sonic Splendour,” regional artist Andrew Pearce will show music videos filmed throughout the local region. The exhibition “Eastern Interiors: explorations from Bathurst to Albury” will be the first MAMA partnership with external curators and commercial galleries.
MAMA shop
20 life-sized collaborative collage portraits by artist Deborah Kelly will be shown in “No Human Being is Illegal” + “Venins Variations.” During a recent residency, Kelly, the first artist-in-residence at the former curator’s cottage at the Botanic Gardens now called ‘MAMA’s House’, mentored Albury participants adorning a life-sized nude portrait of acrobat, Simone O’Brian, a part of the installation.
Galleries aside, MAMA will have three flexible working spaces, a small meeting room and two ‘wet’ spaces for studio work with capacity for 30 students each, making possible studio- residency programs, educational and public programs, all designed to stimulate interest, enjoyment and understanding of the works of art. 24-hour access to the educational suite has been planned for.
MAMA will incorporate a multipurpose auditorium, a sound audio facility, a shop, a 110 seat canvas restaurant and Wi-Fi, as well as ‘green’ elements like reusable rainwater tanks and compartmentalised climate control systems.
Now curator Bianca Acimovic tells us MAMA is looking for creative people to join the team in the several part time positions and she’s calling for applicants to fill 3 jobs.
- MAMA Public Programs Officer to help deliver programs focussed on arousing curiosity, stimulating imagination and creativity, raising levels of art appreciation and expanding horizons.
- MAMA Visitor Liaison Officer to assist in customer service, professional retail and event support, coordinating the front of house roster with MAMA’s volunteer team.
MAMA Visitor Experiences Officer. Also to provide customer service and professional retail and event support.
Applications close Friday, August 14 at 5pm. Information about MAMA at mamalbury.com.au
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