MCA Australia opens an autumn season dedicated to the work of Australian Contemporary Artists

MCA Australia’s program showcases 34 artists from and working in Australia today with two new exhibitions – Warraba Weatherall: Shadow and Substance, the first solo museum exhibition by the Kamilaroi artist and The Intelligence of Painting, which showcases contemporary Australian painting through the work of 14 women artists, and the 2025 Circular Quay Foyer Wall Commission, The Civilisation of the Abstract (2025), by Naarm/Melbourne based artist Diena Georgetti. Completing the program are new displays of MCA Collection: Artists in Focus presenting the work of 18 Australian artists, including rare and significant works from First Nations artists from across the country.

Suzanne Cotter, Director Museum of Contemporary Art Australia said, ‘As Australia’s only public museum dedicated to the work of living artists, we take great pride in exhibiting, collecting and commissioning contemporary art and supporting the work of artists throughout all stages of their career. This autumn we focus on new and innovative work by women artists living in and from Australia and First Nations artists, offering visitors a rich perspective on contemporary art in Australia.’

Kamilaroi artist and educator Warraba Weatherall (b. 1987, Toowoomba, Queensland) foregrounds individual and community histories, including his own family’s experience, to highlight the gaps and biases of the colonial record, as well as its ongoing influence. The exhibition runs until 21 September 2025 and is curated by MCA Australia Curator Megan Robson. It premieres several new artworks created by the artist especially for this presentation, including Trace (2025) a major new co-commission between MCA Australia and the Hawaiʻi Triennial 2025.

The exhibition also features the work of three exceptional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists:  Arrernte and Kalkadoon artist Thea Anamara Perkins (b.1992, Gadigal/Sydney) the youngest artist in the exhibition, Warlpiri artist Julie Nangala Robertson (b.1973, Pauls Springs, Yendemu), Yolŋu artist Nayapnyapa. Yunupiŋu (1945-2021, Yirrkala, north-east Arnhem Land, Northern Territory).

Highlights include a new acquisition of a major painting Lake Baker by Pitjantjatjara artist Timo Hogan and a rare opportunity to view the communal presentation of paintings and prints, from the Tiwi Islands. This Tiwi display presents the very first body of woodblock prints on rice paper produced by artists in the oldest, and longest running Aboriginal art centre, Tiwi Designs. Another highlight is a display honouring artist Rosemary Laing (1959–2024), whose iconic photographic images address the histories and social realities that haunt the Australian landscape.

MCA Collection: Artists in Focus is curated by the MCA Australia curatorial team: Anna Davis, Jane Devery, Anneke Jaspers, Rebecca Ray, Tim Riley Walsh and Manya Sellers.

Warraba Weatherall: Shadow and Substance, Level 1 South Gallery, until 21 September 2025.

The Intelligence of Painting, Level 1 Macgregor Gallery, until 20 July 2025.

MCA Collection: Artists in Focus, Level 2 Galleries. Autumn displays until 4 May 2025.