New Lindy Lee exhibition to celebrate arrival of Ouroboros and a golden partnership at the National Gallery

An exhibition of works by celebrated Australian artist Lindy Lee will open in October to mark the unveiling of her highly anticipated new sculpture, Ouroboros, at the National Gallery of Australia.

The National Gallery will stage an exhibition of Lindy Lee’s work to coincide with the opening of Ouroboros, the major public sculptural work by Lee commissioned for the National Gallery’s 40th anniversary to be installed in the Sculpture Garden. Both Ouroboros and the exhibition, titled Lindy Lee, will open to the public on 25 October 2024.

Supported by Pallion Group as part of a new partnership with the National Gallery, the Lindy Lee exhibition features works from the national collection alongside a new work Charred forest – a natural evolution of Lee’s practice which alludes to the cyclical notions of existence, migration, transformation and hope.

Charred forest 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 works featured in the exhibition explore similar themes to the Ouroboros including ancestry, spirituality, the environment and the cosmos. The Ouroboros mimics the ancient image of a snake eating its own tail, referencing birth and death, renewal, regeneration and transcendence. Visitors will be able to enter the ‘mouth’ of the Ouroboros and experience the darkness that is illuminated by thousands of perforations on its surface.

Lindy Lee said, ‘Similarly to Ouroboros, the exhibition at the National Gallery will be a meditative experience for audiences.’

‘Penetration of the light into the dark speaks to the cyclical nature of Cosmos and the regenerative capacity of life on Earth. These perforations you see in Charred forest and Ouroboros may also be read as wounds or imperfections, however, the old adage, ‘cracks are where the light gets in’ speaks to these openings and vulnerabilities ultimately leading to healing, transformation and growth,’ continued Lee.

Lee’s work has evolved from her long-held questions around identity and belonging stemming from a sense of an ‘existential split’ between her Chinese ancestry and Australian birthplace.

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

Pallion Group will also support the National Gallery’s 2024 Gala, and Annual Lecture which will be delivered by Lee on 24 October 2024. First presented in 1983, the Annual Lecture invites leading art world thinkers to present new ideas in the field of art and art history.

Director Dr Nick Mitzevich said, ‘Lindy Lee’s boldness and creativity has shined throughout her 40-year artistic career.’

‘The arrival of Ouroboros alongside her first solo exhibition at the National Gallery and giving of the 2024 Annual Lecture is truly a momentous occasion for one of Australia’s most significant contemporary artists. The Gallery is incredibly grateful for the generous support from our partner Pallion Group who has helped to make this exhibition possible.’

As part of Pallion Group’s new Arts Program, Lee and Pallion have been working together on a separate project, creating a gold maquette of the Ouroboros. Made from more than 50kgs of pure ABC Bullion Australian gold, the maquette titled Abundance will go on public display at the National Gallery through a long-term loan arrangement from 28 October 2024. The Pallion Arts Program supports emerging and established First Nations and Australian artists to work with precious metals.

Pallion Group CEO, Andrew Cochineas said, ‘We are thrilled to be partnering with the National Gallery to present the Lindy Lee exhibition and the 2024 Gala and Annual Lecture. To launch our National Gallery partnership with Lindy Lee, Australia’s most significant contemporary artist is a privilege and aligns perfectly with the Pallion Arts Program – a program aimed at developing art for all Australians to enjoy.’

‘Precious metals have been used by civilisations for centuries to create art. Our aim is to give Australian artists the opportunity to continue that legacy by giving them access to precious metals that they might otherwise be precluded from working with.’

‘We hope that our partnership with the National Gallery will inspire collaboration, push artistic boundaries, and bring further recognition to Australian art globally,’ continued Cochineas.

Lindy Lee’s practice is explored in a special episode of ABC Compass ‘Lindy Lee and the Cosmos’ premiering this Sunday 12 May at 6.30pm, and anytime on ABC iview.

KEY DATES

Premiere of ABC’s Lindy Lee and the Cosmos 12 May, 6.30pm
Ouroboros & Lindy Lee media preview 24 October 2024, 11am
2024 Annual Lecture 24 October 2024, 6.30pm
Ouroboros open to the public 25 October 2024
Lindy Lee exhibition season 25 October 2024 – June 2025

STORIES & IDEAS
Read here

IMAGES
Available here

MEDIA ENQURIES
JESS BARNES
Communications Manager
M | +61 437 986 286
E | jessica.barnes@nga.gov.au or media@nga.gov.au

MAJOR PARTNER

ABOUT LINDY LEE

Lindy Lee was born in 1954 in Meanjin/Brisbane. Her grandparents and parents emigrated to Australia from China’s Guangdong province in the 1940’s and 50’s. Lee initially studied to be a high school teacher, graduating from Kelvin Grove College of Advanced Education in 1975. She later travelled to Europe where her encounters with art and museums inspired her to pursue a career as an artist. Lee studied fine arts at Chelsea College of Arts in London (1980) and later at Sydney College of the Arts (1984). She now lives and works in the Byron Bay hinterland in New South Wales. Consistent influences on Lee’s practice include Taoism and Zen Buddhism. A practising Buddhist since the early 1990s, Lee says that ‘Zen practice directs me to something fundamental about being, which is that we are constantly in flux and change’. This sense of transition, malleability and impermanence is reflected in her contemporary work, in which delicate perforations are singed into metal and paper. Her spirituality also informs her recent work in sculpture in which free-formed bronze fragments are arranged into harmonious compositions. Lindy Lee was commissioned in 2021 to undertake a major public art installation for the National Gallery’s Sculpture Garden as part of the 40th anniversary of the opening of the National Gallery.

ABOUT PALLION GROUP

Pallion is Australia’s largest independent precious metal services conglomerate, commencing operations in 1951. Pallion subsidiaries refine, design, manufacture and trade precious metal products globally. Its ABC Bullion branded products are a cornerstone of the international precious metals investment market. Pallion supports arts and cultural activities, medical research and education through the Pallion Foundation.