Exhibits,

Lara Chamas What’s that Skippy?

Opening: Wednesday 1 November, 6–8pm Dates: 1 — 25 November 2017

Forever marching backwards to the tune of Centrelink’s (Mozart’s originally) “Divertimento in F major, K. 138”, “What’s that Skippy?” directly contradicts Australia’s self-gratifying idea that it is a country only moving forward. From imbalances of wealth, ineptitude of government and archaic social politics, the mighty Kangaroo that once bounded onward has passed its prime, shriveling into a haphazard zombie, losing all sense of direction.

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Lara Chamas is a first-generation Lebanese non-indigenous Australian artist, based in Melbourne. Her practice investigates sub topics of postcolonial and migrant narratives, specifically within the context of her cultural identity. Her practice explores this in relation to contemporary Australian and global society, and current political issues, such as: refugees, racism, otherness, stigma, language, colonialism, governmental and power relations within society. Currently a completing her Masters by research in Fine Art at Monash University, through the use of narrative and experience documentation, storytelling, oral history/orally transmitted information, and historical texts; her research intends to explore links between narrative theory, cultural practice, current politics, the body and feminine practice. Included in this is personal experience and family history, to relate to contemporary issues in Australian society surrounding bi-culturality and assimilation.

Lara Chamas is the award recipient of the Bus Projects Graduate Award, given at the Monash Art Design & Architecture (MADA) Graduate Exhibition in 2016.

Photography by Christo Crocker.