Since early 2017 Tracey Moffatt and Garry Hillberg’s collaborative exhibition, Montages: The Full Cut, 1999 – 2015, has been touring to regional venues throughout Australia. The last stop on this amazing tour, which has reached over 61,000 audience members, will be Darwin’s Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT) from 28^th January – 26 Mach 2023.

Montages: The Full Cut, 1999 – 2015 presents the full suite of eight montage films by artist Tracey Moffatt and her long-time collaborator Gary Hillberg. Exhibited together for the first time in this exhibition developed by Artspace Sydney, the works span 16 years of their collaborative practice from the first montage work created in 1999 to the latest in 2015.

Very few bodies of work continue to evolve with and remain relevant to the cultural, historical and political times. However, this collection of films has remained sharp and pertinent, taking on new meanings as it is placed in critical dialogue with the events of the last 6 years, including the #metoo movement, Black Lives Matter and the Covid-19 global pandemic.

Mining scenes from iconic Hollywood films, telemovies and arthouse cinema, each montage plays with narrative and character conventions to create new fictions on themes such as love, art, revolution and destruction. The films expose common stereotypes in popular cinema, revealing the ways they inform our collective cultural imagination.

Venues large and small, regional and remote reported their audiences were thrilled to have access these engrossing films by an internationally renowned artist such as Moffatt, who was also representing Australia at the Venice Biennale when the tour kicked off.

M&G NSW has absolutely loved touring this exhibition and we are very grateful for the support from Artspace and Tracey Moffatt, as well as generous input from Garry Hillberg who visited many tour venues presenting public programs, talks and workshops.

We would also like to thank and acknowledge the enthusiasm and hard work of each partner venue along the tour – all presented this suite of films in unique and engaging ways, tailored to their audiences and communities.

Montages was presented at: Shepparton Art Museum Vic, Blacktown Arts Centre NSW, Wagga Wagga Art Gallery NSW, Wanneroo Library and Cultural Centre WA, Newcastle Art Gallery NSW, Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre NSW, Bathurst Regional Art Gallery NSW, Goulburn Regional Art Gallery NSW, Lismore Regional Gallery NSW, Anne & Gordon Samstag Museum of Art SA, Toowoomba Regional Art Gallery QLD, Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts QLD, ArtGeo Cultural Complex WA, Broken Hill Regional Gallery NSW, Swan Hill Regional Gallery Vic, Wollongong Art Gallery NSW, NorthSite Contemporary Arts, Cairns QLD, Art Gallery of Ballarat Vic, Caboolture Regional Art Gallery Qld, and Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, NT.

You can read more about Montages: The Full Cut, 1999 – 2015 here

Montages: The Full Cut, 1999 – 2015 was curated and developed by Artspace, Sydney and is touring nationally in partnership with Museums & Galleries of NSW. This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body.