Everywhen

An Exhibition Design Project

LEE²DESIGN was the exhibition designer for the Everywhen: The Eternal Present in Indigenous Art from Australia exhibition at the Harvard Art Museums. The exhibition explored the ways in which time is represented in Indigenous artistic, social, and ethical life as manifested in Indigenous art and historical objects. The exhibition, the scope of which had not been seen in the United States in over 25 years, showcased 70 different works from collections across both Australia and the United States. Its immensity reflects a shifting art historical landscape where Indigenous art is no longer positioned as “other” but instead has become recognized as a sophisticated art form that plays a central role in the global narrative of contemporary art. 

When configuring Everywhen, LEE²DESIGN worked with the Australian Visiting Curator Stephen Gilchrist, of the Yamatji people of the Inggarda language group of northwest Western Australia, to express the aboriginal experience of an overlapping past and future through the exhibition layout. LEE²DESIGN divided the gallery into the four thematic sections that comprise Gilchrist’s curatorial argument: remembrance, transformation, seasonality, and ritualized performance. In each section, LEE²DESIGN coordinated the display of works by various Indigenous contemporary artists, including Bunya, a painting by the renowned Judy Watson, and Many Lies, a poem piece by Vernon Ah Kee that expanded across an entire gallery wall. The final product was an exhibition that, as put by Gilchrist, “penetrated the museum walls with indigenous art,” and in doing so, indigenized the space itself.

Client: Harvard Art Museums

Location: Cambridge, MA

Year Completed: 2016

Image Credits:

Harvard Art Museums