ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ

At the turn of the 20th century, an unprecedented wave of women artists prevailed against social constraints and left Australia to pursue international professional careers.

This is the first major exhibition to focus on the vital role of these Australian women in the emergence of international modernism, including the now-famous, such as Nora Heysen, Margaret Preston and Grace Cossington Smith, as well as the still under-recognised, such as Agnes Goodsir, Justine Kong Sing and Helen Stewart.

Featuring celebrated and rediscovered paintings, prints, drawings, sculpture and ceramics, Dangerously Modern: Australian Women Artists in Europe 1890–1940 reclaims the place of these pivotal Australian women artists, recognising their contribution to the development of European art. They brought new ideas back to Australia and played an integral, often unrecognised role in modernising our nation. 

With more than 200 works, Dangerously Modern expands our understanding of modern art movements, including realism, impressionism, post-impressionism, cubism and abstraction.  The works in this show challenge preexisting notions of ambition and success, and explore colour, light, form and movement.

Dangerously Modern is accompanied by a richly illustrated book, which examines the exceptional art and extraordinary lives of the women featured in this exhibition, as they broke with convention and carved out independent careers as artists in a period of rapid social change.