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Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South

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RMIT Gallery Creative Antarctica

Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South

20 Feb 2026 – 2 May 2026

This exhibition is showing across RMIT Gallery and RMIT Design Hub Gallery.

'Creative Antarctica' is a multifaceted exhibition featuring Australian artists and writers who have been influenced by their observations and experiences of the Far South.

The exhibition seeks to foster new encounters and perspectives, highlighting the transformative power of art and literature in unveiling the complexities of the South Polar region. 

The exhibition examines the role artists and writers play in expanding the Antarctic narrative to afford new understandings and access to one of the world’s most remote and fragile wilderness zones. Creative Antarctica features both site specific and historically significant works of art, supported by a rich assortment of talks, panels and workshops that offer a variety of engagement opportunities, and modes of encounter with the Far South. 

Creative Antarctica demonstrates how artists and writers play an increasingly vital role in observing and recording the tension between climate, landscape, technology and humans. 

This exhibition was produced as part of the Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Project Creative Antarctica: Australian Artists and Writers in the Far South, in collaboration with project team members. Research was supported by the Australian Government through ARC’s Discovery Projects funding scheme. 

Lead Curator: Philip Samartzis

Artists include James Batchelor, David Bridie, Maria Buchner, David Burrows, Stephen Eastaugh, Lawrence English, Kirsten Haydon, William Hodges, Frank Hurley, Nicholas Hutcheson, Keith Jack, Leila Jeffreys, John Kelly, Janet Laurence, Nel Law, Phillip Law, Alison Lester, Sue Lovegrove, Bea Maddock, Douglas Mawson, John McCormick, Adam Nash, Miranda Nieboer, David Neilson, Sidney Nolan, Charles Page, Judith Parrott, Christian Clare Robertson, Sally Robinson, Philip Samartzis, Jörg Schmeisser, Jan Senbergs, Polly Stanton, Charles Turnbull Harrisson, K. Verell, Martin Walch and Sean Williams.

Image: Keith Jack Mt. Erebus Ross Is. (detail),1914

Gallery Details

RMIT Gallery
RMIT Building 16
Level 3, City Campus
RMIT University
344 Swanston Street
Melbourne VIC 3000

T: 03 9925 1717
E: 
rmit.gallery@rmit.edu.au
W: rmitgallery.com


Opening Hours
(during exhibition periods)
Tuesday – Friday: 11am to 5pm
Saturday: 12pm to 4pm
Closed public holidays, Sundays and RMIT Campus closures. 
Entry is Free

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Gallery Info

The Public Galleries Association of Victoria (PGAV) acknowledges the Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners of the lands where our office is located, and all Traditional Owners of country throughout Victoria and Australia. We recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples enduring traditions and continuing creative cultures. We pay our respect to Elders past, present and emerging.

We are an LGBTQIA+ friendly organisation that celebrates diversity. We are committed to providing safe, culturally appropriate, and inclusive services for all people, regardless of their ethnicity, faith, disability, sexuality, or gender identity.

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