A MAJOR exhibition celebrating the contribution the Bathurst Regional Art Gallery Society Inc. (BRAGS) has made to the cultural life of Bathurst opens next Friday, February 15 at 6pm.
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BRAGS will this year celebrate 50 years of continual fundraising and support for the Bathurst Regional Art Gallery.
BRAGS 50 Years: The Art of Giving presents a selection of works BRAGS has acquired for the permanent collection, and highlights the invaluable role fundraising organisations play in supporting the arts in regional Australia.
In its 50 years of fundraising, BRAGS has raised more than $250,000 and purchased more than 150 artworks, including paintings, prints, drawings, ceramics, sculpture and video works.
Artists of note include Mary Abbott, Sydney Ball, Richard Bell, Russell Drysdale, Donald Friend, Nora Heysen, Jonathan Jones, George Lambert, Gwyn Hanssen Pigott, Tim Storrier, Lloyd Rees, Jo Ross, Peter Rushforth, Luke Sciberras, John Olsen, Peter Wilson, and David Brian Wilson.
A feature of the collection is its focus on the work of local artists, and works that reflect the landscape and heritage of the region.
One of BRAGS’ most significant acquisitions is Stephen Hart’s sandstone sculpture, Conversation.
Commissioned in 1988 to commemorate Australia’s Bicentenary, this work is now a much-loved landmark in Peace Park on the banks of the Wambool/Macquarie River.
In addition to BRAGS 50 Years, BRAG will also launch Night and Day, an exhibition of 300 drawings by graphic artist Wendy Murray, and Seeing Voices, a touring exhibition from the Monash University art collection which looks at the voice and how it is visualised, employed and reimagined in contemporary art.
Local identity Rusty Nails will host the evening.
For further information about these exhibitions, the opening, and accompanying public programs, visit www.bathurstart.com.au or go to the Bathurst Regional Art Gallery Facebook page.