The Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art held at the Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art since 1993 is, as its name suggests, a celebration of contemporary art from Australia, Asia and the Pacific. With this significant exhibition series now in its 31st year and 11th chapter, the QAGOMA Research Library is releasing a relational database which provides researchers with the ability to explore the interconnectedness of the ever-growing list of individuals, groups and projects which are part of the Triennial’s history.
The database provides access to the Asia Pacific Triennial Archive by way of the involvement of individual contributors ranging from exhibiting artists, performers, collaborators, curators, authors, interlocutors, and others to key Gallery staff. In developing this database, the Library aims to transform ongoing access to the archive by providing an interactive resource that fosters further learning, scholarship, and engagement with the Asia Pacific Triennial exhibition series.
To mark the 11th Asia Pacific Triennial (30 November 2024 – 27 April 2025) and the release of the Triennial Archive database, the Library is highlighting its documentation of eight artists who are exhibiting in this year’s Triennial and who are also past participants.
Philippines artist Julie Lluch (b.1946), who exhibited her painted terracotta sculpture Doxology 1993 (illustrated) in the first Triennial in 1993, is returning this year together with her daughter, Kiri Dalena (b.1975), who exhibited the photographic series Erased slogans 2015 (illustrated) in the eighth Triennial in 2015. This year, the two artists are part of the Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago: Roots and Currents multi-artist project which focuses on contemporary art practices from the island of Mindanao and the nearby Sulu Archipelago region located in the southernmost part of the Philippines.
Julie Lluch
Kiri Dalena
In the second Triennial (27 September 1996 – 19 January 1997), Aotearoa New Zealand artist Brett Graham (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Tainui b.1967) exhibited Kahukara 1995 (illustrated) and Tekohao o te ngira 1995 (illustrated), as part of the Pacific men’s waka collective in the Queensland Art Gallery’s Watermall. The concept of the waka (‘vessel’ in Māori), often used in Aotearoa New Zealand to illustrate the country’s cultural diversity, also became a metaphor in the second Triennial for the histories, voyages and migrations of the Aotearoa New Zealand and Polynesian peoples. For this Triennial, Graham is presenting five sculptures which speak to structures created by both British and Māori during the New Zealand wars.
Brett Graham
Also returning to the current Triennial is Mai Nguyễn-Long (b.1970), who participated as a researcher and interpreter for the second Triennial (27 September 1996 – 19 January 1997), visiting Vietnam on a research trip and translating for the Việtnamese artists while they were in Brisbane for the Triennial. For the 11th Triennial, Nguyễn-Long is exhibiting her ‘Vomit Girl’ sculptures (illustrated) which reflect her conflicted sense of identity and belonging growing up as an Australian-born daughter of a Vietnamese father and Australian mother and living in Papua New Guinea and the Philippines.
Mai Nguyen-Long
Jumping forward to the sixth Triennial (5 December 2009 – 5 April 2010), Việtnamese artist Bùi Công Khánh (b.1972) exhibited as part of The Mekong (illustrated), a project which featured works by eight artists from different generations working in Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Việt Nam, and Laos. These works tapped into social and political change, the importance of religion and traditional values, memories of brutal histories, and responses to everyday experience. For the current Triennial (illustrated), the artist is showing a group of new, large-scale vases alongside his first venture into film, a tribute to the ceramic village where he works.
Bùi Công Khánh
Nepalese artist Hit Man Gurung (b.1986) whose work Yellow helmet and gray house (from ‘I have to Feed Myself, My Family and My Country’ series) 2015 (illustrated), in the eighth Triennial (21 November 2015 – 10 April 2016) draws attention to the thousands of workers departing Nepal for substandard conditions on development sites in the Persian Gulf has returned for the 11th Triennial as a co-curator with Sheelasha Rajbhandari of the regionally co-led project TAMBA, a survey of work by Nepalese artists, activists, and indigenous communities.
Hit Man Gurung
For eighth Triennial (21 November 2015 – 10 April 2016) Nomin Bold (b.1982), was one of four young contemporary Mongol zurag painters showing Labyrinth game 2012 (illustrated) and Tomorrow 2014 (illustrated)). Her deep connections with Mongolia’s cultural heritage continues in her current work for this Triennial, Life cup 2023, in collaboration with Ochirbold Ayurzana (b.1976).
Nomin Bold
Finally, in our list of returning artists, we have Alex Monteith (Clan Mitchell, Clan Monteith b.1977) who participated in the tenth Triennial (4 December 2021 – 25 April 2022) as part of the ACAPA Pasifika Community Engagement Project (ACE), with the work Kā Paroro o Haumumu: Coastal Flows / Coastal Incursions 2012 (illustrated), an ongoing transdisciplinary art project that reconsiders landscapes and material removed from middens associated with tauwhare (shelters) and other sites throughout Te Mimi o Tū Te Rakiwhānoa (Fiordland) coastal and marine areas of New Zealand’s South Island, Te Waipounamu. In the 11th Triennial, Monteith is participating in He Uru Mānuka, He Uru Kānuka 2024, a collaborative installation by AWU (Artists for Waiapu Action)
Alex Monteith
Since its inception in 1993, the Asia Pacific Triennial has significantly shaped the art landscape in Brisbane and beyond. Its commitment to highlighting the dynamism of contemporary art practices has fostered a greater understanding and appreciation of diverse cultural expressions from across our region. As the Triennial series continues to evolve and grow so will the Asia Pacific Triennial Archive held in the QAGOMA Research Library.
With the archive now more accessible through the newly developed database, a treasure trove of diverse stories, experiences, contributions, and effects can be explored from individual perspectives. This enhanced access aims not only to illuminate the narratives of past Triennials but also to encourage researchers to delve into the wealth of resources preserved in the archive which range from exhibition catalogues, conference proceedings, reports, artist documentation, photographs, ephemera, press releases, reviews, and critical writings. These combined resources serve to form a comprehensive understanding of the Triennial’s significance within the larger cultural context.
The QAGOMA Research Library welcomes researchers to explore the Asia Pacific Triennial Archive and database onsite during the Library’s opening hours: Tuesday – Friday 10.00am – 5.00pm. For more information or to make an appointment, please contact the Library by email or phone + 61 (07) 3842 9557.
Cath Charlton is Librarian (Collections), QAGOMA Research Library
Art that shares a story
Asia Pacific Triennial
Queensland Art Gallery & Gallery of Modern Art
30 November 2024 – 27 April 2025