Anne Zahalka turns her lens to the ‘lost landscapes’ of QVMAG’s historic dioramas for her ongoing series Wild Life (2006-), an investigation into how animal displays have shaped, and have been shaped by, our relationship with the natural world. Zahalka’s photographs bring into question the traditional display practices of museums and the position of authority they reinforce regarding knowledge, classification and collection. In reviving original dioramas and contrasting them with re-staged scenes, Zahalka offers alternative and contemporary ways to view these landscapes.
Anne Zahalka, Self-Portrait with Lord Howe Island diorama, Australian Museum, 2019. Courtesy the artist
Queen Victoria Art Gallery, Royal Park
1 August 2020 to 24 October 2021
Tasmania
