Landscape and Remembering: In Conversation with Danie Mellor

Join us to hear from renowned artist Danie Mellor, whose large-scale artwork Forever graces the entrance of the new State Library Station as part of the Metro Tunnel Project.

In this talk presented by the Metro Tunnel Creative Program and State Library Victoria, Danie will discuss the story behind the artwork in conversation with Myles Russell-Cook (Artistic Director and CEO of the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art).

Forever is an epic storytelling work which features historical photographic portraits of Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung women set in contemporary landscape imagery of Wurundjeri Country that he has captured using infrared photography.

These historical portraits were sourced from the Library’s archives with the team from the Victorian Indigenous Research Centre.

Tickets are limited – book yours now to avoid missing out on this fascinating talk!

Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Elders were consulted in the development of Forever.

Presented by the Metro Tunnel Creative Program and State Library Victoria.

About Danie Mellor

Danie Mellor is a contemporary artist living and working in Bowral, New South Wales. Born in Mackay, North Queensland, his maternal family heritage is Ngadjon/Mamu with Scottish and Irish settler ancestry from the Atherton Tablelands and Cairns region, and his father’s family emigrated to Australia from California in the early 1900s. His multidisciplinary research and practice explore intersections between contemporary and historic culture, and the legacies of cultural memory and knowledge.

Mellor’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is held in regional and all state and national collections. His work has received major awards, acquisitions, and commissions including the MCA Australia’s Sculpture Commission in 2019, the National Gallery of Australia Member’s 2019 Acquisition Fund, and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award in 2009.

About Myles Russell-Cook

Myles is the Artistic Director and CEO of ACCA, the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art. Myles has a long-standing interest in cultural, gender and sexual diversity within both Australian and International contemporary practice, and has worked across a broad range of exhibitions and projects. For over eight years, Myles was one of a team of curators who oversaw major contemporary art exhibitions at the National Gallery of Victoria, including NGV Triennial, and Melbourne Now.

Internationally, Myles has curated several exhibitions, including a series of shows in collaboration with the Australian Embassy in Paris: DESTIN: l'art de Destiny Deacon (2022), Rituel et Cérémonie: extrait de Mémoires ancestral (2022), Blak Rainbow: L’Art de Dylan Mooney (2023) and La terre est bleue: l'art de Dhambit Munuggurr (2024).

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