Celebrating 25 years of cutting edge arts and culture in Western Sydney, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre (CPAC) will unveil four new exhibitions this September headlined by special anniversary show One Past Liverpool (28 Sept – 10 Nov). Tapping into CPAC’s history to shape its future, the kaleidoscopic mix of artworks from exciting up-and-coming artists will feature alongside an unmissable retrospective of CPAC’s storied past.

One Past Liverpool will kick off with a FREE Launch Day on Saturday 28 September (2-4pm), with complementary wine and food from in-house restaurant Bellbird Dining + Bar.

The suite of exhibitions also includes: Body Remembers (28 Sept – 10 Nov), a photographic series by legendary Indigenous Australian artist Tracy Moffatt; two Sydney Craft Week exhibitions – Pure Joy (21 Sept – 27 Oct), Western Sydney artist Svetlana Panov’s ceramic works inspired by golden fungi clusters, and the Song Tree Exhibition, exploring the intriguing similarities and differences of childhood songs across the globe (21 Sept – 27 Oct); and Fractadella (6 -20 Sept), a series of psychedelic digital animations drawing from CPAC’s industrial architecture.

“We officially turn 25 years young this October! Come along and get festive with us, with this wonderful exhibition ushering in the new guard of fresh artistic blood, brimming with fantastic new ideas as they light the way forward,” said CPAC Director, Craig Donarski.

“As if that weren’t enough, we’ve also got a collection of thought-provoking recent works by Tracey Moffatt, arguably Australia’s most successful artist ever, both nationally and internationally; fascinatingly intricate clay creations from one of our resident ceramic specialists; a multicultural tapestry of global childhood rhymes; and a dizzyingly hypnotic new work on the screens suspended across our Turbine Hall that’ll leave you spellbound,” he said.

One Past Liverpool is a triumphant celebration of CPAC’s 25 year history as an arts centre. The exhibition features a multidisciplinary range of commissioned works by local emerging artists under 25, consulting directly with renowned CPAC leaders and change-makers of the past 25 years including: Lisa Havilah (CEO, Museum of Applied Arts and Science); Maud Page (Assistant Director, Art Gallery of New South Wales); John Kirkman (CEO, Information and Cultural Exchange); Kirsten Fishburn (CEO, Liverpool City Council); plus current Director Craig Donarski.

The commissioned works will directly respond to significant milestone exhibitions from CPAC’s rich well of past works, such as Dresses and Dreams: Migrant Brides in Australia (1995), 9 Lives (1999) and No Added Sugar (2014). These influential exhibitions will be displayed side-by-side with the new commissions, an emblematic baton-passing to the new generation of young creatives.

Body Remembers presents iconic artist Tracey Moffatt’s photography and video work from her critically-acclaimed 57^th Venice Biennale exhibition. Featuring a maid protagonist stranded on a remote colonial property, the photoseries references the pervasive legacy of colonisation and its reverberations across time and place. Accompanying video work Vigil juxtaposes Hollywood imagery with archival images of the 2010 Christmas Island disaster, contrasting acted emotions with genuine human misery.

Pure Joy features a collection of intricately handcrafted ceramics inspired by clusters of golden fungi in Casula Parklands by local artist Svetlana Panov. Crafting her ceramic master works at CPAC’s very own ceramic studio, Panov’s pieces draw heavily from the textures of nature – from aquatic life and landscapes, to the unique plantlife found across Liverpool’s LGA.

Song Tree Exhibition is the result of a series of workshops diving into the distinct similarities and differences of childhood songs, rhymes and lullabies from across the globe, explored through needlework and embroidery “leaves.” With fantastical imaginative songs, as well as darker tunes encouraging good behavior from children, the resulting works are a celebration of the diversity of Liverpool residents.

Taking over the Turbine Hall’s hanging Screen Spaces will be Fractadella by digital artist Len Hurley. Mesmerizingly hypnotic, the video works feature the endlessly multiplying patterns known as fractals, enthralling visitors with psychedelic, hyper-real digital permutations.

Event Details:
What: Launch Day – One Past Liverpool and Body Remembers
When: Saturday 28 September 2019, 2-4pm
Where: Casula Powerhouse, 1 Powerhouse Road, Casula NSW 2170 (don’t forget, Casula has its own train station!)
Price: FREE

What: Sydney Craft Week Exhibitions Launch – Pure Joy and Song Tree Exhibition
When: Saturday 21 September 2019, 2-4pm
Where: Casula Powerhouse, 1 Powerhouse Road, Casula NSW 2170 (don’t forget, Casula has its own train station!)
Price: FREE