Central Exchange pop-up exhibition ![]()
24 August – 8 September 2016
EXTENDED UNTIL 23 OCTOBER
5 Don Street, central Invercargill
The Invercargill Public Art Gallery is excited to announce the first exhibition under its newly reinstated name (formally Anderson Park Art Gallery). Central Exchange,a pop-up exhibition of Invercargill’s art collection, will open on Tuesday 23rd August at 5:30pm at 5 Don Street, central Invercargill, and will run until 8th September.
The two-and-a-half-year closure of the gallery in Anderson Park prompted a unique approach to producing this exhibition. The challenge was finding a suitable temporary exhibition venue in the city centre, which the Invercargill Licensing Trust sponsored. With this new central city presence, came the opportunity for curators Stephen Davies and Claire Baker to innovatively engage a new central city audience.
Central city businesses and retailers were invited to select one artwork from a list of 90 images, which represented the breadth of the City’s collection. The art for selection ranged from works about local Southland people and environments, to nationally and internationally renowned works, such as an etching by Rembrandt (1656). In total, 53 businesses participated and 32 artworks by local and New Zealand artists were selected for display in the exhibition.
Through this collaborative curating, everyone involved has learned something new. The Invercargill Public Art Gallery has been able to take on board the local businesses’ insightful perspectives, and the businesses have learned more about the City’s art collection. “I was excited to see the mix of artworks in the list”, said Helen Hubber of Hubber’s Emporium. “There is a good variety of art in the City’s collection and people will be excited to see it.”
The Invercargill Public Art Gallery is grateful for the support from Creative Communities Invercargill, the Invercargill Licensing Trust, Placemakers and the Invercargill City Council.