Elisa Jane Carmichael’s series Alive (2019) is now showing in (BE)LONGING at Redcliffe Art Gallery until 14th of November, 2026.
The Alive series explore the absence and presence of weaving practices by Quandamooka people over time. Inspired by baskets held in museum collections, these works reflect upon and celebrate cultural practices that were suppressed and almost lost as a result of missionary activity on the islands. Alive is comprised of modern and traditional materials. At the centre of the work is empty space, representing time lost and the unknown. Various details such as fish scales, shells, ungaire looping or fish net ties capture the spirit and life of Quandamooka Country, these beautifully embellished works are full of life and personality.
(BE)LONGING reflects on experiences of longing for connection to culture, to kin, to self and to Country due to the ongoing impacts of colonisation and displacement. The selected artworks consider how connection can continue to exist through inherited memory, intuition, story and feeling. They acknowledge that absence itself is not empty but continues to carry kinship, knowledge and cultural presence. Through shared
experiences of longing, belonging, loss and renewal, the exhibition reveals diverse journeys of maintaining, reclaiming and strengthening cultural connections.
For more information, see the City of Moreton Bay Galleries and Museums website.
Image credits: Living Archive (exhibition view), 2025, Redcliffe Art Gallery. Courtesy of City of Moreton Bay. Photography: Louis Lim.