Directors Jodie Cox and John Stafford had the incredible pleasure of attending the opening of ‘State of the Art: Reimagining Queensland’ at the Rockhampton Museum of Art (RMOA) recently.
Greeted at reception along with other guests by a live ‘wearable’ python, a small crocodile and several desert (lapel) lizards, “…we thought we might have had a date with Robert Irwin”. Instead, it was an engaging encounter with a recent survey on Queensland contemporary art from a non-capital perspective. It’s great to see works by represented artists Darren Blackman and Teho Ropeyarn as well as associate artists and colleagues, Ruth Cho and Sally Molloy, included in this mix. The show continues until 12 October 2025. It’s am impressive show, set in an amazing building for art.
RMOA writes: “An introspective and memory-honouring consideration of Queensland is the premise of State of the Art: Reimagining Queensland. This showcase of Queensland artists contests and explores the idea of the State in all of its conceptual and geographical character. Artists blur borders to clarify the meaning of Queensland through stories about people and places before and since colonisation. This diverse assembly of Queensland artists remind us of who and where we come from and explore where we are going.”
The Rockhampton Museum of Art (RMOA) was awarded the very prestigious 2023 Sir Zelman Cowen Award for Public Architecture. The building’s beautiful spaces are very artist and patron conscious and are a tribute to both the client, Rockhampton City Council, and its architects.
You can listen to Darren Blackman in conversation with Nickeema Williams on the Rockhampton Museum of Art’s podcast, ‘Behind the Art,’ available on Spotify.
Onespace sincerely congratulates all the artists included and the curatorial team, Robert Connell, Ashla Doherty, Melinda Mann, Jonathan McBurnie, Tessa McIntosh and Emily Wakeling.
Installation view, ‘State of the Art: Reimagining Queensland’, Rockhampton Museum of Art, 2005. Photo: Hello Mae Studio.
