SERPENT : ABORIGINAL ART FROM AUSTRALIA
FROM 21 JULY 2023 TO 28 JANUARY 2024
Serpent is the first exhibition of Australian Aboriginal art to be mounted in Morocco. It draws on the collection of Bérengère Primat and the Fondation Opale. As its title suggests, the exhibition focuses on artworks in which the serpent plays a primordial role.
The serpent motif or form is found in many cultures throughout the world and often assumes an important role in local mythology. In Australian Aboriginal culture, the serpent―and more precisely the Rainbow Serpent―is one of the most important ancestral beings.
This mythical snake can be found throughout the Australian continent. Many stories in Aboriginal culture center on the Rainbow Serpent. This being is sometimes identified with the rainbow, but it is also associated with water in the form of rain, rivers, and pools of water. As a fertility symbol, it is both father and mother to all life, and as such forms an essential link joining man and nature. Besides being a creative force, the Rainbow Serpent can also manifest itself destructively. This is especially the case when people trample on the laws of the land of which the snake is often seen as a custodian.
It comes as no surprise that the Rainbow Serpent features prominently in Aboriginal art. This exhibition presents several artworks by some of the most prominent Australian Aboriginal artists―including John Mawurndjul, Rover Thomas and Emily Kam Kngwarray―who feature the serpent as a subject. At the same time, Serpent offers us a rich and diverse overview of Aboriginal art.
Exhibition curators : Bérengère Primat et Georges Petitjean
Exhibition design : Jasmin Oezcebi
