Concrete

Overview

Contemporary art is so often buzzy and fast. Trends change, innovation is the only thing that's sacred, and the more glitz and excitement the better. For a group of people stereotyped as contemplative and morose, it's strange we don't see more artists delving into the past. This latest exhibition at MUMA takes issue with exactly that. Marking the centenary of the First World War, sixteen artists from Australia and abroad have been tasked with examining the fleeting nature of time. In these works they create a solemn and considered monument to impermanence.

With varied focusses on the destruction or abandonment of various social and geological phenomena, the artworks featured  in the collection examine the nature of both memory and construction. In Comparative Monument, Tom Nicholson catalogues Australian war monuments that feature the word 'Palestine'. In Un-resettling, James Taylor re-erects Indigenous settlement areas along the Australian countryside. It's an earnest collection of works that admittedly aren't going to provide a pick-me-up on a weekend afternoon, but they will give your mind a workout.

With social and physical changes in constant motion around us, it's important to take a moment to reflect. What better place to do so than the sacred space of the art gallery?