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Monica Mason as The Chosen Maiden in The Royal Ballet production of 'The Rite of Spring' (1962). © Roy Round
Painting for the stage: Kenneth MacMillan and Sidney Nolan's ‘Rite of Spring’
(Friday 27 September)
Fifty years on, Kenneth MacMillan's choice of Sidney Nolan for his Rite of Spring has proved to be an extraordinary and enduring one. Deborah MacMillan and Clement Crisp discuss the work, and how a painter used to working in two dimensions came to terms with a third.
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Café Intellectual: Reading Robert Hughes - sketch Evening Event
(Sunday 13 October 2013)
A Sunday evening salon with selected readings, screenings and bevvies in honour of the controversial figure hailed as 'the greatest art critic of our time', Robert Hughes. Co-presented by The Field (Katrina Schwarz and Elizabeth Stanton) and in collaboration with sketch.
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Christian Thompson: Artist Talk
(Thursday 7 November 2013)
Australia-born artist Christian Thompson discusses the notion of landscape in his work featured in ‘Australia’, his childhood in the Australian outback, and the inspiration for his multidisciplinary practice whilst based in the UK. The talk takes place in situ at his debut London show at 'The Hospital Club' in Covent Garden.
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Tim Winton: The Island Seen and Felt; Some Thoughts about Landscape
(Friday 15 November 2013)
Author Tim Winton explores his belief that ‘Australia the place is constantly overshadowed by Australia the national idea. Undoubtedly the nation and its projects have shaped my education and my prospects, but the degree to which geography, distance and weather have moulded my sensory palate, my imagination and expectations is substantial. Landscape has exerted a kind of force upon me that is every bit as geological as family.’
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Reynolds Room; 1–2pm; reserve a seat online or call 020 7300 5839
Grace Cossington Smith, The Bridge in Building, 1929. Oil on pulpboard, 75 x 53 cm.
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. Gift of Ellen Waugh 2005
© Estate of Grace Cossington Smith The Making of Australia
(Monday 23 September 2013)
Kathleen Soriano, exhibition curator; Dr. Anna Gray and Franchesca Cubillo, National Gallery of Australia.
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Land and Landscape: The Colonial Encounter
(Monday 30 September 2013)
Ron Radford, Director, National Gallery of Australia.
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The Antipodean Dream
(Monday 7 October 2013)
Imants Tillers, exhibition artist.
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A Tale of Two Countries: Australian Art in the UK
(Monday 4 November 2013)
Dr Sarah Scott, Australian National University.
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Albert Namatjira: Magic Windows into the Central Australian Desert
(Monday 25 November 2013)
Scott Rankin (writer/director), Trevor Jamieson (actor), and Big hART (Australia’s leading arts and social change company).
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Shaun Gladwell, 'Approach to Mundi Mundi', 2007. Production still from two-channel HD video. Photo Josh Raymond. © Shaun Gladwell / Josh Raymond. Shaun Gladwell: Artist Talk
(Saturday 26 October 2013)
Internationally acclaimed Australian contemporary artist Shaun Gladwell, whose 'Approach to Mundi Mundi' opens the exhibition, discusses his video 'performance landscapes,' which often explore the dynamic between people, the rural or urban spaces they occupy, and extreme sports.
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Corbett Lyon
(Saturday 16 November 2013)
In 2000, the architect Corbett Lyon and his wife Yueji embarked on a project to combine a family home with a museum for their collection of contemporary Australian. The result, the Lyon Housemuseum in Melbourne, brings domestic and museum typologies into an elegant and intriguing dialogue, creating a succession of carefully composed spaces that accommodate both a family and art collection from which a number of works are exhibited in the Australia exhibition.
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Street Photography Workshop. © Roy Matthews London: Hidden Nature
(Saturday 21 September 2013)
Professional photographer Roy Matthews leads this workshop in successfully capturing London's hidden natural landscape. Comprising a practical session outdoors, followed by a critique at the RA, this workshop is designed for all abilities and camera types (although digital is preferred for immediate image review on the day).
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Courtney Collins: ‘The Burial’
(Friday 30 August 2013)
As part of the RA’s exhibition exploring the art, history and land of Australia, author Courtney Collins leads a discussion of her breathtaking debut novel in the tradition of Cormac McCarthy, ‘The Burial’, inspired by Australia's last bushranger, the young woman Jessie Hickman.
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Evie Wyld: ‘After the Fire, a Still Small Voice’
(Monday 28 October 2013)
Celebrated author Evie Wyld leads a discussion of her award-winning first novel. Set in the unforgiving landscape of eastern Australia, her book tackles the inescapability of the past, the ineffable ties of family, and the wars fought by fathers and sons.
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In partnership with Allen & Unwin.
Sidney Nolan, Ned Kelly, 1946. Enamel paint on composition board, 90.8 x 121.5 cm.
National Gallery of Australia
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. Gift of Sunday Reed, 1977 Australian Identity
(Friday 1 November 2013)
This half-day event considers the representation and reinvention of Australian identity through Australian film, art, cultural legend, television, design, and cuisine. Speaker and programme details are available on the RA website.
Supported by the Government of Victoria, Australia.
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Exhibition Tours
45-minute introductory talks; free with an exhibition ticket.
2.30pm Wednesdays, 7pm Fridays (25 September–29 November 2013)
Spotlight Talks
10-minute talks on individual works; free with an exhibition ticket.
3pm on Thursdays
Family Studio: Sheepish Shenanigans
(Sunday 20 October 2013)
As part of ‘The Big Draw’, take sheep as your inspiration in this free drop-in family workshop, where we will be sketching from life and creating wool landscapes.
Family Studio: Colour in the Desert
(Sunday 24 November 2013)
Two Aboriginal artists from the Central Australian Desert and descendants of the famous Aboriginal Australian watercolourist Albert Namatjira guide this very special watercolour landscape painting workshop.
Tuesday 29
and Thursday 31 October 2013
Explore the art of landscape, as seen in the ‘Australia’ exhibition, in a workshop comprising an interactive slide talk, a visit to the exhibition and a hands-on session.
The Royal Academy offers an exciting programme of gallery visits and educational resources for teachers and students. Please call 020 7300 5995, email learning@royalacademy.org.uk or click here for further details.
The RA offers a range of access resources, including large print label guides and audio guides with descriptive tours, for use in the galleries. Access events can be booked online. Visitors with limited mobility can book parking spaces and wheelchairs on 020 7300 8028. Contact the Access Officer on tel/text 020 7300 5732, fax 020 7300 8013 or email access@royalacademy.org.uk
InteRAct at the RA (Friday 18 October 2013)
An event for deaf, deafened and hard of hearing visitors - Francesca Herrick talks about the exhibition with Speech to Text Captioning and BSL Interpretation.
InTouch at the RA (Monday 28 October 2013)
An event for blind and visually impaired visitors – an audio described tour of the exhibition, followed by a multi-sensory handling session.
InMotion at the RA (Monday 4 November 2013)
An event for wheelchair users and mobility impaired visitors – an introductory tour of the exhibition, followed by coffee and conversation in the Saloon.
