Mandy Martin From Queanbeyan to New York: 1978-1984 / Art & Life

Mandy Martin arrived in Queanbeyan from Adelaide in 1978 as an emerging artist, with her primary experience working in the cut and thrust of politically charged community arts. Within just six years she was exhibiting large scale canvases at one of the most prestigious art museums in the world. This exhibition charts the shifts in Martin’s practice over those years, from the sensitive gouaches of her near neighbours and friends, to the expressive drama of the paintings that speak to her deep concern for the environment. Born in 1952, Mandy Martin passed away in July 2021 and is regarded as one of the most preeminent artists of her generation. While a major commission for Australia’s new Parliament House brought her to national attention in 1988, this new exhibition takes us to an earlier point in her career. As well as charting the rapid shifts in her personal practice, the exhibition also reveals her influence in what was a new art scene in Canberra of rigorous art school training, enthusiastic DIY artist initiatives, and loud and politically charged printmaking.