Four must-see works of art at QAGOMA's 11th Asia Pacific Triennial

Since the Queensland Art Gallery/Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) hosted the 10th Asia Pacific Triennial (APT) in 2021, the world has experienced many changes. Therefore, it is not surprising that concepts such as crisis, community, care, and the preservation of traditional customs are the focus of APT11, currently on display in Meanjin/Brisbane until April 27.

This year’s Triennial brings together more than 70 artists and art groups from over 30 countries, showcasing works in various media, techniques, and materials. Four significant pieces stand out in the exhibition. Even if you cannot visit QAGOMA before the Triennial concludes, there is no need to worry, as nearly half of the 500 works will enter the gallery’s permanent collection.

Firstly, a striking sculptural work by artist Brett Graham from Aotearoa tells a subtle story about the privilege of colonialism. His installation, "Tai Moana Tai Tangata," although including a video component, is truly memorable for its five sculptural works. Towering in QAGOMA's foyer and connecting corridors, these pieces, utilizing the architectural styles of colonial warfare, transport visitors back to the mid-to-late 19th century, the early days of British colonization of Aotearoa/New Zealand, particularly the Taranaki region of the North Island.

Ruth McDougall, QAGOMA’s Curator of Pacific Art, explains that Taranaki is significant in Aotearoa’s history because it was where the land wars broke out in 1858, “and how Māori communities responded to the confiscation of land through both force and the gospel of peace.” Graham created “Tai Moana Tai Tangata” during a residency in Taranaki, responding to the events that occurred there, paying homage to the Taranaki Māori and his own iwi (tribe), the Tainui Māori. McDougall states that Graham wants viewers to compare the past, as reflected in his monument-like sculptures, with the present.

Secondly, the final work of Hawaiian artist Bernice Akamine is a celebration of interconnectedness and tradition. Her work, “Kumu 2024,” is presented in the form of a quilt, made using kapa cloth. Kapa is a Hawaiian barkcloth traditionally used to make clothing and other textiles before the introduction of imported Western fabrics. McDougall explains, “It reflects an ancient Hawaiian chant, 2,108 lines long, that records the cosmic origin genealogy of 800 generations of kings and queens. It also illuminates the connections between the Hawaiian land, sea, sky, people, and gods.”

The Kanaka Maoli artist personally grew and prepared the paper mulberry bark needed for “Kumu 2024,” then dyed it with natural pigments and imprinted it with patterns of the sea, land, and sky. She was unable to sew every piece of cloth together while she was alive, so her daughter, Kaiulani Akamine, completed the work. Although “Kumu 2024” is on display at APT11, Bernice originally planned to submit two works to the Triennial. McDougall says that Akamine wanted the works to collectively “allow viewers to feel the deep connection of Kanaka ‘Ōiwi (Native Hawaiians) to their land, sea, and sky, as well as their connection to royal lineage and their ongoing allegiance to royalty.” Even standing alone, “Kumu 2024” is a celebration of kapa cloth making, an art form that requires the sharing of cultural knowledge, the use of traditional techniques and materials, and is often completed with the help of the community. As a work of two generations, it also proclaims that the Hawaiian people still exist.

Thirdly, a striking installation by Meanjin-based artist Jasmine Togo-Brisby reveals the history of slavery in Australia. Today, decorative Wunderlich ceilings are a highly sought-after architectural feature. However, this iconic metal sheeting is linked to the slave trade, a connection that fourth-generation Australian South Sea Islander artist Jasmine Togo-Brisby brings to light through her installation “Copper Islands 2024.” Starting in the 1860s, approximately 62,000 Pacific Islanders were taken from their homes to Australia, forced to work on Queensland’s sugarcane plantations. Today, this practice is known as "blackbirding."

Togo-Brisby’s great-great-grandmother was kidnapped from Vanuatu at the age of eight and forced to work for the Wunderlich family in Sydney. In “Copper Islands 2024,” Togo-Brisby interprets the popular Wunderlich ceilings as a symbol of oppression. Her site-specific work is a large ship-shaped structure made of pressed metal, incorporating her community’s stories into the Wunderlich visual language. “It’s a very powerful work that speaks to the history of labor, migration, and oppression in Australia, created by a fairly young artist who has been working to give voice to her community, whose labor was instrumental in the success of many of the sugar industries in Queensland and Australia,” McDougall said. “This work seeks to provide a memorial for communities that have not seen any success, whose connections to their homes were severed long ago. So, Jasmine sees the trauma of the slave ship as the place where her community sees itself as belonging.”

Lastly, the mosaic tile work of Palestinian-Saudi artist Dana Awartani hints at the devastation caused by war. Many of the 439 handmade mud bricks that make up Dana Awartani’s “Standing by the Ruins 2022” are broken. The bricks, each a different color, are arranged according to a unified principle, based on a sixfold geometry. The different earth tones and the sacred geometry of Islam together “hint at abstract flowers, stars, and other elements from the natural world.” Abigail Bernal, QAGOMA’s Associate Curator of Asian Art, explains, “But, unlike very traditional mud bricks, she has omitted the straw that is used to bind the bricks together, and that also prevents them from cracking as they are formed.” This is a deliberate choice.

“[Awartani does this] to reflect on the loss of cultural heritage, different traditions and techniques, and architectural heritage itself in many places, from Palestine where her family is from, to Afghanistan—any cultural landscape that has been affected by war, destruction, and neglect.” The 11th Asia Pacific Triennial is on display at QAGOMA in Meanjin/Brisbane until April 27.