ACMI announces events program for Melbourne Winter Masterpieces Exhibition Light: Works From Tate's Collection

ACMI announces events program for Melbourne Winter Masterpieces exhibition Light: Works from Tate's Collection

Oscar-nominated cinematographer Ari Wegner and award-winning filmmaker Warwick Thornton headline in-conversation events

Exhibition tickets now on sale

Today ACMI reveals Light: Works from Tate’s Collection, an Australian-exclusive exhibition featuring 70+ works harnessing the phenomenon of light and spanning 200 years of art history, will be accompanied by an extensive events program featuring Oscar-nominated cinematographer Ari Wegner (Power of the Dog, Lady Macbeth) and multi-award-winning filmmaker Warwick Thornton (Samson and Delilah, Sweet Country), fantastical magic lantern presentations, late-night exhibition access, a boundary-pushing performance by Liquid Architecture, plus tours, workshops and more. Exhibition and selected events tickets are now on sale.

The events program will extend and explore the ideas showcased in Light, a major exhibition curated by Tate (UK) and presented by Visit Victoria, running 16 June to 13 November at ACMI in Melbourne. Featuring extraordinary creations harnessing light as both material and subject, this exhibition includes groundbreaking works by Joseph Mallord William Turner (including his epic painting The Deluge exhibited for the first time in Australia), Claude Monet, Alfred Sisley, Joseph Albers, Tacita Dean, Liliane Lijn, James Turrell, Yayoi Kusama and Olafur Eliasson.

Minister for Creative Industries Danny Pearson said: “From impressionist masterworks to awe-inspiring contemporary creations, this collection from Tate will light up ACMI as part of an epic creative winter in Melbourne.”

“Whether it’s visiting an exhibition, going to an event or taking in a show, there are more reasons than ever to immerse yourself in Australia’s culture capital.”

ACMI Acting Director & CEO Graham Jephcott said: “ACMI has developed a fascinating events program that will enable art-loving audiences to complement their exhibition experience of Light: Works From Tate’s Collection.

“The phenomenon of light is central to moving image creation and as Australia’s national home for screen culture, we are so proud to further explore this elemental force via a range of free and paid events in our redeveloped museum.”

Delivering an insight into the craft of cinematography and its connection to light, ACMI will present the Light Cinematographer Program, featuring an in-conversation event with Oscar nominee Ari Wegner (Power of the Dog) in October 2022. This event will be programmed alongside screenings of two double bills, each featuring a film from Ari’s back catalogue and a film that has inspired her. Full event details will be announced on 16 June 2022.

In another instalment of the Light Cinematographer Program, Kaytetye-born (Alice Springs) multi-award-winning director and cinematographer Warwick Thornton (Samson and Delilah) will participate in an in-conversation event at ACMI in July 2022. This discussion will also take place alongside screenings of two double bills, each showcasing a work from Warwick’s back catalogue and a film that has influenced them. Full event details will be announced on 16 June 2022.

An evening of audiovisual performances inspired by British artist Lis Rhodes in collaboration with Australia’s leading sound organisation will take place with Liquid Architecture x Light. Light Music, presented in ACMI’s Gallery 3 as part of the Light exhibition, is Lis Rhodes’s response to what she perceived as the lack of attention paid to women composers in European music. This one-off performance program is a response to her work, celebrating the rich culture of sound and image experimentation by contemporary women artists in Australia, presented by ACMI in partnership with Liquid Architecture.

On select Friday evenings, ACMI will also present Late Night Access providing after hours entry to Light: Works from Tate’s Collection. Visitors can enjoy refreshments from our beverage partners Handpicked and Young Henrys and food from Hero in the aptly named Light Lounge, which will see ACMI’s largest foyer transformed into a sophisticated space for relaxation, where visitors can re-fuel before and after seeing the exhibition plus indulge in late-night shopping at the ACMI Shop. Out at Fed Square, visitors will also be able to warm up on selected evenings with local DJs and a selection of Light inspired content on the giant Fed Square screen, along with a lit up ACMI building.

The Art + Film series will continue with a focus on light via the Optical Poetry: Oskar Fischinger Retrospective, presented in association with the Center for Visual Music (CVM). The program will screen a selection of short films by Oskar Fischinger, the creator of Raumlichtkunst (1926-2012), which is currently featured in ACMI’s award-winning centrepiece exhibition The Story of the Moving Image.

The Art + Film series will also feature screenings of the filmmaker’s pioneering work in Oskar’s Legacy: Films Influenced by Fischinger, presented in association with the CVM. Supported by the Naomi Milgrom Foundation, the program will feature dazzling short films introduced by Melbourne filmmaker Paul Fletcher.

Unmissable family-fun will be delivered via the wonder of a 19th century Magic Lantern Show. Audiences are invited to join magic lantern experts Dr Martyn Jolly and Elisa deCourcy as they recreate the 19th century magic lantern show in a contemporary interpretation. Combining the art of original glass slides, with special optical effects and electroacoustic music performed live, these performances connect to works in Light and The Story of the Moving Image.

Join Tate’s curator Matthew Watts for the Curator Talk, where art lovers have an opportunity to learn more about the conceptual development of Light with an illustrated talk covering the exhibition’s art historical context and thematic ideas. The talk will be hosted by ACMI Curator Laura Castagnini. ACMI’s Relaxed Visit, Audio Described Tour and Auslan Tour will also run across numerous sessions, ensuring the exhibition remains accessible for a range of audiences.

In Avant-garde Animation for Adults, participants will get the chance to create their own jaw-dropping abstract animation. Inspired by the works of experimental artist Oskar Fischinger, the workshop will explore possibilities presented through the medium of animation in a fun, hands on way.

Adults can explore the fundamentals of motion capture technology in Future of Light: Workshop at the Centre for Transformative Media Technologies. Held at the Swinburne University of Technology's Embodied Movement Design Studio, the masterclass will explore the practical application of motion capture and volumetric motion capture within filmmaking, exploring the use of virtual cameras and directing performers for motion capture.

ACMI’S LIGHT EVENTS PROGRAM

Late Night Access
17* & 24* June, 29* July, 26 Aug, 30* Sep, 28 Oct, 11 & 12 Nov
Free entry with exhibition ticket
Grab a cocktail from the bar and relax in ACMI’s Light Lounge before exploring the Australian exclusive exhibition after hours.
*Activities will also take place in Fed Square on selected dates.

Curator’s Talk
18 Jun
Join Tate’s curator Matthew Watts to learn more about the conceptual development of Light with an illustrated talk covering the exhibition’s art historical context and thematic ideas. Hosted by ACMI Curator Laura Castagnini.

ART+FILM - Optical Poetry: Oskar Fischinger Retrospective
Presented in association with Center for Visual Music
28 Jun
Screenings of selected short films by Oskar Fischinger, the creator of Raumlichtkunst (1926-2012), currently featured in ACMI’s The Story of the Moving Image.

ART+FILM - Oskar’s Legacy: Films Influenced by Fischinger
Presented in association with Center for Visual Music
5 Jul
Dazzling short films by animators and filmmakers inspired by Oskar Fischinger, introduced by Melbourne filmmaker Paul Fletcher. Supported by the Naomi Milgrom Foundation.

Relaxed Visit
30 Jul & 24 Sep
Visit the Light exhibition in a relaxed environment. Suited for visitors with ASD, sensory sensitivities or anyone who would benefit from a quieter and less busy setting.

Audio Described Tour
30 Jul & 22 Oct
Explore the Light exhibition in a tour designed for visitors who are blind or have low vision. The tour combines audio-description and tactile resources.

Future of Light - Workshop at Swinburne Institute of Transformative Media
6-7 Aug
A masterclass exploring the practical application of motion capture and volumetric motion capture within filmmaking, exploring the use of virtual cameras and directing performers for motion capture.[FM1]

Magic Lantern Show
9-11 Sep
Experience the wonder of a 19th century magic lantern show when Dr Martyn Jolly and Elisa deCourcy recreate it. This contemporary interpretation combines the art of original glass slides, with special optical effects and electroacoustic music performed live.

Auslan Tour
24 Sep
Dive into ACMI’s Light exhibition in a tour designed for visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing. This tour will be led by experienced Auslan guides

Avant-garde Animation for Adults
21 Oct
Join ACMI for a glass of wine and the chance to create your own jaw dropping abstract animation. Inspired by the works of experimental artist Oskar Fischinger, explore possibilities presented through the medium of animation in this fun, hands on workshop for adults.

Liquid Architecture x Light
5 Nov
An evening of audiovisual performances inspired by Lis Rhodes Light Music, whose work will be showing in Gallery 3. In collaboration with Liquid Architecture, this performance program celebrates the rich culture of experimental music made by women in Australia.

Light: Works from Tate’s Collection is proudly supported by our generous partners; Presenting Partner Visit Victoria, Major Research Partner RMIT University, Major Academic Partner Swinburne University of Technology, Supporting Partners About Space Lighting, City of Melbourne, Fujifilm instax, Lil’Stones, Sofitel Melbourne on Collins and Media Partners Broadsheet, Smooth 91.5, The Australian, The Saturday Paper & Val Morgan.

The Light exhibition was supported by the Australian Government International Exhibitions Insurance (AGIEI) Program. This program provides funding for the purchase of insurance for significant cultural exhibitions. Without AGIEI, the high cost of insuring significant cultural items would prohibit this major exhibition from touring to Australia.

Light: Works From Tate’s Collection runs 16 June to 13 November 2022. Exhibition and selected event tickets are now on sale via acmi.net.au/light

NOTES TO EDITORS:

Light: Works from Tate’s Collection
16 June – 13 November 2022
ACMI, Fed Square
Tickets: Full $30 | Concession $27 | Member $25 | Child $10 | Family (2 adults and 2 kids) $70 | Education $13 | Groups (12+) $25 | Flex ticket $45 |

Opening hours
Mon – Fri: 12–5pm
Weekends and school holidays: 10am–6pm

About Light: Works From Tate’s Collection

Curated by Tate in the UK and drawn from their prestigious collection, Light: Works from Tate’s Collection celebrates groundbreaking moments from over 200 years of art history, and the artists who harnessed this elemental force through painting, photography, sculpture, drawing, installation and the moving image.

Connected by their fascination with light as both material and subject, more than 70 works feature in this exclusive blockbuster exhibition, including must-see historical paintings by iconic artists like the great Romantic painter J. M. W. Turner, John Constable, Wassily Kandinsky and Josef Albers, as well as the atmospheric beauty and transient light effects captured by Impressionist painters Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro and Alfred Sisley.

These extraordinary paintings are juxtaposed against equally groundbreaking works from modern and contemporary artists: Olafur Eliasson’s crystalline sculpture Stardust Particle (2014), Yayoi Kusama’s kaleidoscopic The Passing Winter (2005), James Turrell’s immersive Raemar, Blue (1969), Tacita Dean’s 16mm film Disappearance at Sea (1996) and Liliane Lijn's moving sculpture Liquid Reflections (1968). Viewed collectively, these radiant works draw fascinating links across time, medium and style, projecting light onto the viewer’s body and absorbing them into visions of infinite lustre and luminosity.

Presented alongside our award-winning centrepiece exhibition The Story of the Moving Image, which explores the essential contribution of light to the moving image, this major exhibition from Tate illuminates centuries of artistic practice and uniquely places film in a broader art historical context.

Light is also flanked by two major, free exhibits.

Gallery 3 will feature another work from Light and Tate’s collection, Light Music (1975), by Lis Rhodes, a major figure in the history of artists’ filmmaking in Britain. As one of the early proponents of expanded cinema, Rhodes positions audiences as both participants and spectators in a work revealing the experimental interrelationship of light and the moving image.

A major new commission by contemporary Australian artist Mikala Dwyer will be displayed in ACMI’s lightwell. Featuring a cluster of monumental transparent plastic forms suspended high above visitors’ heads, the work explores materiality, open ended narratives and the play of light.

About ACMI:
ACMI is Australia’s national museum of screen culture. The museum reopened in February 2021 after a two-year, $40 million redevelopment – an architectural, programmatic and technological transformation. Navigate the universe of film, TV, videogames and art with us. ACMI celebrates the wonder and power of the world’s most democratic artform – fostering the next generation of makers, players and watchers. ACMI’s vibrant calendar of exhibitions, screenings, commissions, festivals, and industry and education programs explore the stories, technologies and artists that create our shared screen culture. More at acmi.net.au

About Tate:
Tate is a family of galleries in the UK that includes Tate Britain and Tate Modern in London, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. Spanning 500 years, Tate’s collection holds the national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. Tate is recognised internationally as a leading art institution and has a major international touring program which sees these artworks travel to galleries across Britain and around the globe. Tate has long been engaged with Australian art and artists, including through the staging of exhibitions such as Love and Desire: Pre-Raphaelite Masterpieces from Tate at the National Gallery of Australia, Canberra in 2018.

About Melbourne Winter Masterpieces at ACMI:
ACMI has been part of the Victorian Government’s annual Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series since 2007, bringing major international exhibitions such as Disney: The Magic of Animation, David Bowie Is... and Hollywood Costume exclusively to Melbourne, and creating multi-award-winning blockbusters that have subsequently toured the world. More than 1.4 million local, interstate and international visitors have experienced a Melbourne Winter Masterpiece exhibition at ACMI, with the museum's homegrown touring exhibitions such as Game Masters, DreamWorks Animation: The Exhibition and Wonderland attracting over 4 million visitors across five continents.

Images and credits available to download here.