Neighbour at the Gate: a groundbreaking exhibition at the National Art School
This week, the National Art School (NAS) unveils its highly anticipated new exhibition, The Neighbour at the Gate. Opening to the public on 11 July 2025, to coincide with NAIDOC Week, the exhibition will run until 18 October 2025 at the NAS Gallery in Darlinghurst, NSW. Curated by an esteemed team led by Wardandi (Noongar) and Badimaya (Yamatji) woman Clothilde Bullen OAM, alongside Micheal Do and Whadjuk Balladong and Wilman (Noongar) woman Zali Morgan, this world premiere exhibition delves into the enduring legacies of immigration policies and colonialism in Australia. It explores how these forces continue to shape the experiences and relationships of First Nations and Asian Australian communities. A Powerful Artistic Collaboration The Neighbour at the Gate brings together newly commissioned works by six leading contemporary artists: Jacky Cheng, Elham Eshraghian-Haakansson, Dennis Golding, Jenna Mayilema Lee, James Nguyen, and James Tylor. Through their diverse practices, the exhibition examines themes of exclusion, resilience, memory, and nationhood, drawing vital connections between the past and present. Curator Clothilde Bullen explains, “This exhibition seeks to centre connection between First Nations and Asian Australian cultural groups and raise the level of awareness of those connections, which have existed outside dominant or mainstream culture for as long as humans have come and gone to this continent. By gathering the artists and curators together to tell their stories, we consider the importance of who gets to tell these stories, the archive from which they are drawn, and how they shape perceptions and identities. It is urgent and timely that we offer… Read More
