Bill Viola at the NGA

29 July – 6 November 2005

The National Gallery of Australia presents an exhibition of video works by American artist Bill Viola.

Exhibition admission charges apply; 16 and under free. First 2000 tertiary students free. Go to nga.gov.au/Viola for more information.

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First 2000 tertiary students free

Viola by night – ART-TALKS-FILMS-MUSIC

Go to the Getty Bill Viola: The Passions website

The National Gallery of Australia presents Bill Viola: The Passions, a mesmerising exhibition of recent works by the internationally-renowned American video and sound installation artist. Organised by the J Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles – then shown in London and Madrid – Bill Viola: The Passions is on display in Canberra only, until 6 November. As well as 12 works from The Passions series, the exhibition includes Five Angels for the Millennium 2001, an all-enveloping environment of sight and sound.

Since the 1970s Viola’s videos and installations have dealt with themes of perception, memory and self-awareness. In 1998, during a period of study at the Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Viola immersed himself in the artistic conventions of expression. The results of this research – encounters with old master paintings, and with theories of emotional expression – led him to the challenge of depicting ambiguous or mixed emotions. In The Passions, an ongoing series begun in 2000, Viola tackles one of the oldest problems in art: how to convey the power and complexity of human feelings. Using new technology, he examines the manifestations of emotions, through silence, extreme slow-motion, and psychologically-gripping depictions of the faces and bodies of his performers.