Potter Museum of Art

Exhibition

65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art

30 May – 22 Nov 2025

Tertiary

Engage with unique museum-based learning opportunities for tertiary students and researchers.

Schools

Encourage critical thinking and creativity in Grades 3–12 with exhibition tours and curriculum resources.

A dark, stylized sculpture of a human figure with curly hair, minimal facial features, and broad limbs. The figure stands upright against a neutral background.

Renee So
Woman III, 2018
stoneware
The University of Melbourne Art Collection

Two-panel abstract artwork depicting figures dancing and playing instruments amidst nature-inspired motifs. A hand reaches from above to a boat on water, with varied shapes and patterns in vibrant blue and white hues enhancing the scene.

Dhambit Munuŋgurr
Welcoming the refugees / Scott Morrison and the treasurer, 2020–21
synthetic polymer paint on Stringybark
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Purchased through the Margaret Cooper Bequest fund, 2021

Sculpture of funerary mask of a woman made out of plaster, paint, and cartonnage dated 30 BCE to 600 CE

Funerary mask of a woman, 30 BCE – 600 CE
Plaster, paint, cartonnage
The University of Melbourne Art Collection
Gift of David and Marion Adams

A head and body of a brown doll in a cloud

Destiny Deacon
Freefall, 2001
from the series Forced into Images
light jet print from Polaroid original
Michael Buxton Collection, the University of Melbourne Art Collection. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program by Michael and Janet Buxton

An abstract painting featuring a person in a black suit sitting on a red chair on a red, grey and yellow background.

Mia Boe
Maniac Scholar, 2024
oil on linen
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Purchased through the Margaret Cooper Bequest Fund, 2024.

A pink air bag with a hole with red round circles resembling eyes with text starting Tesla models

Alicia Frankovich
T-E-S-L-A- face, T-E-S-L-A- crash, T-E-S-L-A- crash face dummy I, 2023-24
deployed Tesla air bag, epoxy glass resin, aluminium.
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Purchased through the Margaret Cooper Bequest Fund, 2024

Abstract cubist artwork depicting a face with geometric shapes, wavy lines, and earth tones. Features include fragmented forms and hues of blue, brown, and green, suggesting depth and movement.

Ludwig HirschfeldMack
The Cigarette, c. 1950s
watercolour on spackle on cardboard
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Gift of Mrs Olive Hirschfeld

A line of eleven silhouetted figures in tribal attire dance with raised arms, holding sticks or spears, on a beige background. The black, sketchy lines give an impression of movement and rhythm.

Tommy McRae
Before the fight – A war dance, 1890
pen and ink on paper
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Purchased through the Russell and Mab Grimwade Miegunyah Fund with the support of the Australian Government through the National Cultural Heritage Account

A framed painting depicts a serene landscape with large trees and greenery in the foreground. A cityscape is visible in the distance under a blue sky with clouds. A person stands on a path gazing at the view.

Henry Gritten
Melbourne from the Botanical Gardens, 1865
oil on canvas
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Purchased through the Russell and Mab Grimwade Miegunyah Fund.

A surreal painting shows two women in period attire, fragmented into rectangles within an oval frame. Beneath, three scissors stand upright on a marble table, with another scissor lying flat. The background features vertical grey stripes.

John Brack
The Queen 1988
oil on canvas
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Gift of Helen Brack. Donated through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program, 2012

A person with mouth open sits on floor in front of a synthesiser as a crowd of people watch

Angela Goh
Body Loss, 2017
performance work
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Purchased 2024.

Abstract sculpture featuring a multicolored face with large red lips, golden accents, and a textured surface. The figure has long black legs, an elongated torso adorned with hanging beads, and a gold vase-like object on top.

Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran
Untitled figure 12, 2016
earthenware, glaze, gold lustre, platinum lustre, resin, shells, wooden beads
The University of Melbourne Art Collection

A black and white photo of a person dancing in front of a reflective screen

James Barth
Stone Milker, 2023
video still
The University of Melbourne Art Collection

A montage of drawings of faces on a colourful background

Richard Larter
Star Type, 1979
cotton and wool
The University of Melbourne Art Collection. Commissioned by the Resource Centre of the State College of Victoria, Hawthorn, 1979