Michael Cook – Asia Pacific Triennial

The 7th Asia Pacific Triennial at Queensland Art Gallery & Gallery of Modern Art Brisbane opened with a weekend of celebration. Featuring Michael Cook as one of 75 artists, his new series holds pride of place on the ground floor of GOMA. The exhibition is well worth the visit with artwork from over 27 counties - The Middle East to the Pacific Islands. Don't miss the only major exhibition series that focuses exclusively on the contemporary art of the Asia Pacific. On until 14 April.

Michael Cook and Bruce McLean (Curator, Indigenous Art QAGOMA) in discussion - Artist Talk series as part of APT7 opening weekend celebrations.

Michael Cook's new series entitled Civilised looks at four European countries that visited Australia before and in the early stages of colonialisation: The Netherlands, Spain, England and France. It asks ‘what makes a person civilised?’ and suggests what a different historical settlement may have been like if those Europeans had arrived in Australia and realised that the Indigenous Peoples were indeed civilised.

Captain Cook wrote "these people may truly be said to be in the pure state of nature, and may appear to some to be the most wretched upon the earth; but in reality they are far happier than ... we Europeans."

Michael Cook, Civilised #1 & 13, 2012, inkjet print on archival Hahnemuhle cotton paper, 100x85cm, ed 8, Collection Queensland Art Gallery.

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