Starstruck: Australian Movie Portraits and Peter Solness: Lamplight will provide visitors to BRAG with an exploration on the diversity of photography from portraits used for marketing of movies and early 20th Century casting books to experimental digital photography.

Starstruck: Australian Movie Portraits is a touring exhibition developed by the National Portrait Gallery (NPG) and the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), presenting still photography of some of the most iconic actors and movies Australia has ever produced

BRAG is the only NSW venue to host Starstruck during its national tour.

The exhibition includes images of film icons such as Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett and Chris Hemsworth, and original costumes from The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert and Satine's red dress from Moulin Rouge!, as well as casting books from the early 20th Century.

Peter Solness: Lamplight presents works developed during Solness' time in the Hill End Artists in Residence Program in 2016. Captivated by the history and inhabitants of this remote gold mining town, Solness has continued to return to Hill End to produce a series of 'light photographs' of the artists who live there, and the ghosts of its past.

Peter Solness' practice of photography is based on "light painting", photographing in the dark of night, setting the camera on a tripod and photographing a long exposure of between four and 60 seconds.

While the exposure is happening Peter will create patterns with light or illuminate surfaces and objects within the photograph. The resulting images appear dream-like and otherworldly.

Peter Solness: Lamplight contains a series of portraits of the residents and landscapes of Hill End.

A series of public programs will run in conjunction with the exhibitions. On Saturday 8 June at 11am, Peter Solness will deliver an artist talk about his exhibition and practice as a photographer. Little Faces, a playful activity specifically for children 6 months to 3 years and their parents will be held 9:30am to 10:15am on Thursday 20 and Friday 21 June (booking essential, call 6333 6555). On Saturday 22 June at 11am, you can join a highlights tour of Starstruck led by National Portrait Gallery Learning Facilitators. Also, on Saturday 22 June from 3pm to 4pm will be a Visual Thinking Strategies™ session, which is a new approach to looking and talking about art in a group setting (booking essential, call 6333 6555). All programs mentioned above are free.

The exhibitions run from Friday, June 7 to Sunday, June 28. Entry to the exhibitions is free.