Descend down the escalators in the Art Gallery of NSW’s ultra-chic modern north building, and you’ll see an enormous octopus perched above the entrance to one of the most anticipated exhibitions of the Sydney summer – step inside a futuristic cyber cityscape with Cao Fei: My City is Yours. An unfurling of purple tentacles beckons you to step into the multidimensional world of this influential Chinese contemporary artist, and become totally immersed in playful and inventive multimedia installations.
Whethering you're looking to escape to a cool place on a belting hot day, or hide from some nasty looking rain clouds, Sydney’s best art galleries and top museums have you covered. The city’s major summer exhibitions are now welcoming visitors, and we reckon they're living up to the blockbuster status.
The Art Gallery of NSW is levelling things up in a surreal way, recently unveiling Magritte (open ‘til Feb 9) – the biggest display from the influential surrealist painter ever seen in Australia. Taking things from the origins of surrealism to art for the future, AGNSW is also introducing visitors to the cyber futurism of pioneering Chinese contemporary artist Cao Fei in Cao Fei: My City is Yours (until Apr 13).
Both of the aforementioned exhibitions are exclusive to the Harbour City as part of the Sydney International Art Series, which is rounded out by a major survey of acclaimed NYC painter Julie Mehretu at The MCA, titled Julie Mehretu: A Transcore of the Radical Imaginatory (until Apr 4).
Over at Artspace (you know, the Wolloomooloo institution that took out the inaugural Impact Award in Time Out Sydney's Arts & Culture Awards) artist Tamara Henderson has turned her attention to those unsung heroes of the ecosystem – earthworms. Slug in the Mug (until Jan 5) features a wide variety of mediums, including glass and ceramic sculptural works, a sound installation, new paintings and textile works; Henderson delves deep into alchemy, Earth systems, and symbolic and material transformations.
Are you more in the mood for some ancient history? Then prepare yourself for a journey into the “lost city” of Peru via the Australian Museum with Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru (until Feb 23). Following the success of Ramses and the Gold of the Pharaohs last summer, this blockbuster exhibition will take you on a deep dive into remarkable cultures and histories.
Keen to check out what Sydney’s next wave of emerging artists are cooking up? Head on over to the National Art School in Darlinghurst for the 2024 Grad Show (Dec 6-15). Showcasing a dynamic array of artworks and styles (and also allowing you to peek inside the artists' studios!) each year the NAS Grad Shows garner interest from gallerists and collectors alike, who take the opportunity to meet artists at the launch of their careers. (Find out more at nas.edu.au – and hot tip, while you’re in the neighbourhood, wander over to Qtopia Sydney.)
We’re also keen to get out west to check out Spot the Difference (until Feb 18), which has invited 16 artists to play around with Sydney’s most enduring urban myth, the legend of the Penrith Panther, at Penrith Regional Gallery. Featuring work by Abdul-Rahman Abdullah, Billy Bain, Claudia Nicholson, Jason Phu, Blak Douglas and Regina Walter, the exhibition presents new and existing bodies of work that connect with the mythology and iconography of the panther, and engage with the cultural and social functions of myth and storytelling in contemporary culture. On top of this, emerging designer Osselan Tupai Scanlan has designed some badass panther T-shirts to go along with the exhibition, and you can buy one to take home. (Find out more over here.)
Better yet, all of the above is just the tip of the iceberg. Read on for the coolest exhibitions to have a gander at.
