By Alayna Patterson
Aspiring curators have taken over the historic Ultimo MUSE Gallery to highlight an array of graduates’ artwork for the 2025 TAFE Art Grad Show.
Students from various TAFE campuses are honouring the MUSE Gallery space in an exhibition that will celebrate the achievements of 2024 graduate students from a diverse range of disciplines.
“The end result of this exhibition is to try to show people what TAFE has got to offer,” said Nick Vickers, teacher of Cultural Arts and Administration. “The talent that comes out of TAFE is just remarkable.”
Not only is this exhibition displaying an incredible array of art in various mediums, but is also showcasing the often-unspoken art of those behind the scenes — the team displaying and installing the works.
Highlighting the strengths of the pieces themselves is a meticulous craft, honing the collaborative talents of Arts and Cultural Administration students from the Meadowbank, Enmore, Northern Beaches, Hornsby, Ultimo, and St George TAFE campuses.
The artwork disciplines included in the exhibition span graduates from Graphic Design, Visual Arts, Ceramics, and Photography/Digital Imaging Diplomas offered at the same campuses.
The artists on show include: Daisy Knight, Kim Redmond-Fewtrell, Margaret Chapman, Rona Sissons, Seung Min Kwak, Sally Conrick, Yuri Shimmyo, Helena Blackstock, Lea Binetter, Nicola Khoury, Samantha Mackie, Yael Stern, Lucy Hookway, Natasha Hasemer, Lina Ocolisan, Ilaria Mita, Alanah Stunden, Lisa Halden, Charlie Mendoza Mendez, Jordan Diggins, Jarrod Adams, Katalin Butcher, Tristan Charles, Mann Byanju.
The MUSE, or Building C, was formerly the Technological Museum. It stands proudly now on TAFE Ultimo campus. Built in 1892-93, The building remains a significant site due to its Federation Romanesque architecture, and has played a key role in education, research, and Sydney technical education history.
While students were hard at work bringing the space together, the North Wing of The MUSE is taking a stand to turn heads and give a new, nuanced perspective.
“Let’s bring this old space back to life,” said Vickers. “There’s no better way to do it than to put on an exhibition for young, contemporary artists. Put new thinking into an old space.”
This showcase stands testament of bright futures to come, especially when an environment is cultivated by passionate forces: teachers with a long career in the field and a keen eye for drawing out the unpredictable.
If you give an audience what they expect, often there is no “wow” factor. The graduates have studied and worked diligently to give people the unexpected, and garner a strong response.
It goes unsaid that as these graduates launch their careers that they’ll continue to “wow” us viewers. Graduates from these courses have gone to work at various Australian museums and galleries and nourished the skills they’ve harnessed back at TAFE.
The exhibition pays homage to the past and paves the way for their future, as they create and curate for years to come.
The opening show takes place this Thursday evening, March 20. The exhibition will run from March 21 till Thursday April 3.
Featured Image: Nick Vickers and students set up a piece in a cabinet of The Muse’s North Wing. Photo: A Patterson
