CDU opens gallery to refused artworks

Art works rejected from inclusion in one of the Northern Territory’s most iconic and prestigious exhibitions will be on show at the Charles Darwin University from next month.

The CDU Art Gallery will host the Salon des Refusés, 2016 exhibition alongside the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award (NATSIAA), which will be held at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory in August.

CDU Art Gallery Curator Joanna Barrkman said this was the first time that CDU had exhibited Salon, an exhibition that was growing in prominence, since its inception in 2013.

“By all accounts Salon16 will be the most spectacular to date,” Ms Barrkman said. “More than 60 artworks by Indigenous artists will be on display including bark paintings, canvases, sculptures, fibre works, ceramics and even a multi-media virtual experience.”

Ms Barrkman said the CDU Art Gallery was delighted to be working with Territory art entrepreneurs Matt Ward and Paul Johnstone to host the Salon des Refusés exhibition in 2016.

“There has always been a lot of discussion about the art work that misses out and there is always some controversy,” Ms Barrkman said. “This will give the public the opportunity to see some of the great works that miss out on being selected for NATSIAA.”

The original Salon des Refusés was an art exhibition that took place in Paris in 1863, showing works that had been rejected by the official Paris Salon.

Salon des Refusés 2016 is presented by Outstation – art for art centres and the Paul Johnstone Gallery at CDU Art Gallery, 4 August – 30 September 2016. Opening hours: Wednesday to Friday 10am - 4pm; Saturday 10am to 2pm. For more information visit W: cdu.edu.au/artgallery.