Atong Atem Banksia exhibition

MARS Gallery is pleased to announce Atong Atem’s Banksia will travel to Gosford Regional

Gallery until April 15th.

14 February 2024

THE exhibition opens at the Gosford Regional Gallery, 36 Webb St East Gosford, NSW 2250 on 23 February at 6pm and will run until 14 April.

As part of the Hometown series, the exhibition recognises the practices of artists with connection to the Central Coast. Atong was raised on the Central Coast and Banksia explores the lesser-known history of Australia's first African settlers and considers migrant stories from a non-colonial perspective.

The video and photographic works highlight the experience of African men and women who arrived on the First Fleet in 1788 — a colonial history that started long before Atem’s own family arrived from South Sudan in 1997. In fostering a deeper understanding of the experiences of Australia’s first African migrants, Atem interrogates the shaping of national policy, through the centuries, which has directly influenced who is determined to be Australian and non-Australian.

Atong Atem is an Ethiopian born, South Sudanese artist and writer living in Naarm/Melbourne. Atong Atem’s work explores the inherent intimacy of portraiture and photography as well as the role photographers take as story tellers. Atem has exhibited her work widely across Australia and internationally, including recent exhibitions at the TATE Modern, Wereld Museum Rotterdam, and regional exhibitions at UQ Art Gallery, Tweed Gallery and Adelaide Perry Gallery. In 2022, Atem received the La Prairie Art Award and in [MARS] 2018, Atem was the recipient of the National Gallery of Victoria and MECCA M-Power scholarship