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The APT11 exhibition at QAGOMA is more than just an art display; it represents a experience. Running until April 27, this exhibition brings together over 500 works from 70+ artists across 30 countries. Each piece tells a powerful story, exploring themes like colonial history, climate change, and cultural identity. Visitors can expect thought-provoking installations that challenge the way we see the world. Let’s take a closer look at some of the standout pieces.
1. Brett Graham’s Colonial Ghosts
Aotearoa (New Zealand) artist Brett Graham presents Tai Moana Tai Tangata, a powerful reflection on colonial history. In GOMA’s foyer, five massive sculptures recreate colonial war architecture. These structures transport visitors to the 1800s Taranaki land wars, making history feel immediate and real.
Ruth McDougall, curator of the APT11 exhibition at QAGOMA, explains that Graham’s work highlights how colonial entitlement still influences today’s global challenges, including climate change. His sculptures force us to confront uncomfortable truths.
Why it matters now?
Colonialism isn’t just in the past. Graham’s work makes a bold statement: “This legacy? It’s why our planet’s on fire.”
2. Bernice Akamine’s Love Letter to Hawai’i
The late Bernice Akamine created Kumu 2024, a quilt made from kapa, a traditional Hawaiian bark cloth. She carefully cultivated the materials and decorated them with sea-and-sky motifs. However, before she could complete the piece, she passed away. Her daughter, Ka‘iulani, finished the stitching, turning it into a true family heirloom.
This quilt, displayed at the APT11 exhibition at QAGOMA, holds deep cultural significance. It includes 2,108 lines of Hawaiian genealogy, intertwining stories of land, gods, and people. Every stitch connects past and present, reminding us that traditions still shape identity.
Why it matters now?
Kumu makes a clear point in a world obsessed with constant change: “Tradition isn’t dead—it’s our anchor.”
3. Jasmine Togo-Brisby’s Sugarcoated Truth
Many people have never heard of “blackbirding,” but it played a significant role in Australia’s history. In the 1860s, traffickers forced 62,000 Pacific Islanders into brutal labor on sugarcane fields. Jasmine Togo-Brisby’s Copper Archipelago 2024 brings this history into focus.
Her installation transforms Queensland’s famous Wunderlich ceilings into a striking boat-shaped memorial. This piece carries a personal connection—her great-great-grandmother was taken from Vanuatu at just eight years old and forced to work for the Wunderlich family. Displayed at the APT11 exhibition at QAGOMA, her work is a defiant response to erased histories.
Why it matters now?
Slavery built powerful empires. Togo-Brisby’s work asks an important question: “Who’s profiting today?”
4. Dana Awartani’s Broken Heritage
Saudi-Palestinian artist Dana Awartani presents Standing by the Ruins, an installation of 439 handmade adobe bricks. Many of the bricks are cracked and broken, symbolising destruction and loss. She reflects on the cultural sites lost in Palestine, Afghanistan, and beyond through precise Islamic geometric patterns.
By intentionally omitting hay—a material that prevents cracks—she shows how war weakens traditions. The APT11 exhibition at QAGOMA allows audiences to see heritage in danger. As curator Abigail Bernal describes, this work is a “lament for vanishing heritage.”
Why it matters now?
As conflicts escalate, Awartani’s work serves as a warning: “What’s lost can’t be rebuilt.”
More Must-Sees at APT11 Exhibition at QAGOMA
For those visiting, there are even more thought-provoking works to explore:
- Mit Jai Inn’s Maze: A psychedelic tunnel installation in QAG’s Watermall—think Alice in Wonderland meets contemporary art.
- Haus Yuriyal’s Harvest Garden: A collaboration of 28 Papua New Guinean artists blending shields, carvings, and video in a lush courtyard.
- Dawn Ng’s Melting Time: A block of frozen pigment that slowly dissolves—showing how beauty, like time, fades away.
Why the APT11 Exhibition at QAGOMA Feels Urgent
This exhibition is a reflection of today's world. Themes like climate anxiety, stolen histories, and cultural loss make it incredibly relevant. The APT11 exhibition at QAGOMA invites visitors to do more than observe. The artists featured here challenge audiences to look, listen, and respond.
With free entry, workshops, and film screenings, QAGOMA ensures everyone can participate in these critical conversations. Whether you are drawn to history, activism, or creativity, this exhibition offers something that will stay with you long after you leave.
