Drawn from the Indigenous Australian Art collection, Smokescreen: A Thickness of the Air presents artworks that disguise, disrupt or conceal. The exhibition explores the different reasons elements of an artwork may be obscured, from the protection of secret or sacred ceremonial business to natural phenomena that veil or blur vision.
The exhibition highlights contemporary paintings incorporating abstract patterns associated with disguise, works that replicate patterns found on animals, and artworks showcasing traditional body painting designs. Together, these works challenge perceptions of past and present.
Image: Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri, Anmatyerre people, Australia c.1932–2002 / Two Jangala warriors from Warlugulong 1995 / Synthetic polymer paint on canvas / 120 x 180cm / Purchased 1997 under the Contemporary Art Acquisition Program with funds from National Australia Bank Limited through the QAG Foundation / Collection: Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art / © Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri/Licensed by Aboriginal Artists Agency
