Lindy Lee

Lindy Lee is one of Australia’s most accomplished contemporary artists. To complement the unveiling of Ouroboros, Lee’s major new public art commission for the National Gallery, this exhibition brings together highlights from across the artist’s career as well as a monumental new installation and works on paper. Exploring themes of ancestry, spirituality, the environment and the cosmos, this display of new and recent works will shed light on Lee’s ever-evolving and ambitious practice.

Lee’s new work Charred forest alludes to the cyclical notions of existence, migration, transformation and hope. It comprises camphor laurel trees that have been treated using the Japanese preservation technique of Shou Sugi Ban, which blackens the logs, before being pierced with a scattering of conical holes revealing the natural colour of the timber underneath. Piercings will appear as stardust, falling from above and penetrating the tops of the branches.

The exhibition continues to build on the National Gallery’s Know My Name initiative, which celebrates the work of all women artists with an aim to enhance understanding of their contribution to Australia’s cultural life.