Four upcoming solo exhibitions set to launch at the Bathurst Regional Art Gallery [BRAG] this Saturday will each share an affinity for place.
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The four exhibitions: RE: Union; Ngurang Buwugarra-gu Gudhi-dha Murruway, Wiradyuri Ngaanha; Of this Place and Flightpaths: feature works from Wiradyuri artists Amala Groom and Birrunga Wiradyuri, multidiscipline artist Jock Alexander and sculptor Tom Buckland respectively.
Through a five-year survey of video and photographic work, RE: Union reflects upon Groom's use of self-portraiture to explore complex issues around identity, sovereignty, history, politics, culture and spirituality.
A Bathurst-based Wiradyuri conceptual artist, Groom's practice is informed and driven by social, cultural and political factors facing First Nations peoples.
With Ngurang Buwugarra-gu Gudhi-dha Murruway, Wiradyuri Ngaanha, Birrunga hopes to inform visitors artistically about the significance of geographic and historic places around the Bathurst region to the Wiradyuri people through his own songline.
"I've used the stories of our traditional custodians to construct these works, and it showcases the historical and spiritual connection to country and place through the eyes of a Wiradyuri man," Birrunga said.
"The works evoke Wiradyuri views on history, spirituality, colonisation and country, and this exhibition is a real homecoming story for me."
Of This Place investigates Alexander's connection to Wahluu- Mount Panorama, which forms the basis for much of his work.
"I first visited the Mount when I was four, and I've been drawing and painting it ever since," he said.
"My works make use of natural materials I find on my travels, and my affinity with the local Wiradyuri community plays a key role in how I express the region through art."
Buckland's Flightpaths makes use of bronze, cardboard and found objects to explore the emotional, ethical and imaginative connection to the world of birds.
"Throughout human history, birds have played the roles of friend, foe and food, and this exhibition investigates the impact of climate change on migratory bird species and how they're forced to adapt to rapidly changing natural and built environments," he said.
BRAG director Sarah Gurich said the "suite of exhibitions pay tribute to the ties that bind us to place: cultural, spiritual, social, historic, and aesthetic."
The four exhibitions will run until December 6. For more information, visit www.bathurstart.com.au.