Curator Talk: Virginia Rigney

Join Virginia Rigney, CMAG’s Senior Curator Visual Arts, as she charts six pivotal years in Mandy Martin’s early career, in the exhibition, Mandy Martin From Queanbeyan to New York: 1978-1984 / Art & Life. Over this short period Martin’s work changed dramatically: from delicately pastel-hued gouache paintings of Martin’s neighbours in Queanbeyan, to confident large-scale canvases of apocalyptic landscapes.  

Learn more about Martin’s involvement in the burgeoning independent Canberra arts community that emerged at this time and how her work was received on the global art stages of Paris and New York. The exhibition celebrates Martin’s legacy following her recent passing and features a selection of the works generously donated by Martin to CMAG.

Free, bookings essential 

Mandy Martin, Fire Escape 1 1981, paint stick on Dessin, 75 x 101 cm, CMAG, gift of the artist 2021 [detail]

Image credit: Image courtesy the Estate of Mandy Martin