Minnie Pwerle, Awelye Atnwengerrp, 2002, synthetic polymer paint on canvas. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased with the assistance of Cathryn Mittelheuser AM in memory of Margaret Mittelheuser AM, 2017.
UQ Brisbane City includes the thoughtfully restored heritage building, 308 Queen Street. The artworks on display at this location were chosen to enrich the experiences of everyone using these spaces, and to complement the historical significance of the building.
This heritage listed building was originally the site of the National Australia Bank and has been carefully restored as part of UQ’s ongoing commitment to the preservation of Queensland’s history and enriching its future. 308 Queen Street has important connections to the colonial history of Brisbane. It was designed by Francis Drummond Greville Stanley and built between 1881 and 1924. It is a significant example of the Classical Revival style.
Artworks at 308 Queen Street
To counterbalance the historical weight of the building and its past, works of art were chosen to recognise the artistic contribution of First Nations people in Brisbane and Queensland, in recognition of the traditional custodians of the land on which UQ Brisbane City stands, and in reflection of the University’s commitment to reconciliation.
These three very significant works by major Australian female artists reassert the importance of recognising the legacy of First Nations artists as the first creators. While singular in style and approach as well as subject matter, each painting speaks to the importance of Country in First Nations art and culture.
Learn more about each of the artworks below.
Ground Floor, 308 Queen Street
Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori, Dingkarri, 2008, synthetic polymer paint on linen, image 151.8 x 136 cm. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased 2009. 2009.117
Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori, Dingkarri, 2008, synthetic polymer paint on linen, image 151.8 x 136 cm. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased 2009.
The late Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori was born on the south side of Bentinck Island, which is located off the South Wellesley Island Group in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland. Her Kayardild language name Mirdidingkingathi means ‘born at Mirdidingki’, her country on Bentinck Island, and Juwarnda means ‘dolphin’, which is her totem. Gabori was an accomplished weaver, and only started painting at the Mornington Island Art Centre in 2005, around the age of 80. Her work rapidly received great acclaim and she is widely considered one of the greatest Australian artists of the twenty first century.
Her work, which describes her country, is most often characterised by its ebullient use of colour, from vibrant pink and red to undiluted yellows and blues, and its unique approach as distinct from her contemporaries.
Gabori was the subject of a major retrospective exhibition, Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori: Dulka Warngiid – Land of All at the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane in 2016 that subsequently travelled to the National Gallery of Victoria. In 2022 Gabori is the subject of a major solo survey exhibition at the Fondation Cartier pour l’Art Contemporain in Paris, France..
Elizabeth ‘Queenie” Giblet, Atapa Mukana, Tchununchi Mukana (Big river, small river), 2008, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, image 159 x 182 cm. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased 2009.
Elizabeth ‘Queenie’ Giblet is a senior Umpila woman, born at the original mission station established at Lockhart River, the “Old Site”, before the Second World War. Queenie, as she is known, was named after Queen Elizabeth and is part of the group of respected “Old Girls” who paint with the Lockhart group. She has exhibited all over Australia and internationally. This painting describes Queenie’s Country, specifically the lifeline of the Lockhart River and its many tributaries, as though seen from an aerial perspective. Lockhart River, with its intricate mangrove system and pristine beaches, is situated some 800 kilometres north of Cairns and is often isolated due to extreme weather conditions caused by the annual wet season. This intricate work describes the natural beauty of this region and reflects the scale of the country.
Carlene West, Tjitjiti, 2013, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, image 181.8 x 121.8 cm. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased 2014. 2014.17
Carlene West, Tjitjiti, 2013, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, image 181.8 x 121.8 cm. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased 2014.
Carlene West was born in southern Spinifex country, a region in the Great Victorian Western desert that extends all the way to the Nullarbor Plain, at Tjitjiti, a salt lake. As a teenager she moved to Cundalee Mission, which became home to many Spinifex people forced off country due to nuclear testing at Maralinga.
West’s paintings most often give form to Tjitjiti, sacred country, the vast, elongated, salt lake ringed by sandhills, as suggested here by the two circular forms, in her signature palette of red and white. The vastness of the landscape is suggested in an aerial format. Her work is held in numerous important collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and the British Museum, London.
Minnie Pwerle, Awelye Atnwengerrp, 2002, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, overall 120 x 90 cm. Collection of The University of Queensland, purchased with the assistance of Cathryn Mittelheuser AM in memory of Margaret Mittelheuser AM, 2017.
