Brian Robinson In Conversation With Sally Butler | Blooms, Beasts and Beyond

Exhibition: 22 November – 21 December 2024

Opening Event: 23 November, 5pm – 7pm

Brian Robinson In Conversation With Sally Butler | Blooms, Beasts and Beyond

For Blooms, Beasts and Beyond, Brian Robinson envelopes us in the early times, ‘in the beginning’, when the spirits and deities created the Islander world. A time where deities like Sida, Gelam, and Waiet created the attributes for each of the respective islands of the Torres Strait such as Moa, Mabuiag, and Mer. A time when the spirits and gods did not exist in a separate realm, they were integral to everyday life.

These deities were identified with certain rocks, trees, pools of water and dark caves, and manifested themselves in the form of birds, reptiles, sea creatures and other animals. They were chameleons and could, at will, assume human form or that of any other creature. Blooms, Beasts and Beyond features works that explore this labyrinth, ventured into only by the initiated few who have acquaintance with the spirit realm.

Sally Butler is Associate Professor in Art History at the University of Queensland and a freelance artswriter with a particular interest in contemporary intercultural art. Recent publications include S. Butler ‘Brian Robinson’s Printmaking: The Imprint of Universal Printmaking‘ in Minar Palay Mabayg: Brian Robinson Mossenson Publishing, Perth WA, IN PRESS 2024/25; and S. Butler, ‘The Work of Justice: Taring Padi. Tanah Tumpah Darah’ in Art + Australia, Vol 59 No 1 2024, https://artandaustralia.com/59_1/p230/the-work-of-justice-taring-padi.