And Still I Rise
Intrepid and conceptually challenging, physically intricate and philosophically layered, the works in this exhibition herald a reconsideration of contemporary Australian art, writes curator Natalie Seiz.
Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I’ll rise.
Titled after a book of poetry by the acclaimed American writer and civil rights activist Maya Angelou, And Still I Rise presents the work of 20 women artists who variously consider themselves diasporic, hybrid, diverse, First Nations or Australian. The title of the exhibition resonates deeply with the ongoing challenges confronting women of colour, especially in an era when assumed equality prevents the recognition that resilience is still required to rise above persistent intolerance.
Each of the artists in the exhibition creates poignant work using materials that reflect their individual life experiences and inherited memories. On show are works by Kim Ah Sam, Mia Khin Boe, Mechelle Bounpraseuth, Chun Yin Rainbow Chan, Agnes Christina, Rubaba Haider, Gillian Kayrooz, Jenna Mayilema Lee, Eugenia Lim, Kyra Mancktelow, Haji Oh, Mandy Quadrio, Monica Rani Rudhar, Marikit Santiago, Devi Seetharam, Sancintya Mohini Simpson, Shireen Taweel, Bic Tieu, Suzann Victor and Wendy Yu. And Still I Rise has been a collaborative undertaking and an opportunity for the artists to speak in an environment where I hope they feel comfortable, fully accepted and included.
The personal journey of working on this exhibition has been a privilege that has allowed me to learn about the lives and experiences of these remarkable artists. I had always wanted to curate an exhibition of women artists in Australia who not only shared a similar background to mine but had an intrinsic understanding of what difference feels like within the Australian context; artists who have unapologetically reflected on this issue in their work. Beyond simply wanting to belong, there is an undeniable benefit in being fully accepted for who you are, regardless of skin colour; something that would be unimaginably liberating. Although we already have identities, others like to impose alternative ones on us – characteristics that neatly fit within already established stereotypes. In his 2002 book Step across this line, Salman Rushdie has spoken of it in these terms: ‘… to cross metaphorical lines [is as important] as it is to cross actual ones: not to be contained or defined by anybody else’s idea of where a line should be drawn’.
The personal journey of working on this exhibition has been a privilege that has allowed me to learn about the lives and experiences of these remarkable artists. I had always wanted to curate an exhibition of women artists in Australia who not only shared a similar background to mine but had an intrinsic understanding of what difference feels like within the Australian context; artists who have unapologetically reflected on this issue in their work. Beyond simply wanting to belong, there is an undeniable benefit in being fully accepted for who you are, regardless of skin colour; something that would be unimaginably liberating. Although we already have identities, others like to impose alternative ones on us – characteristics that neatly fit within already established stereotypes. In his 2002 book Step across this line, Salman Rushdie has spoken of it in these terms: ‘… to cross metaphorical lines [is as important] as it is to cross actual ones: not to be contained or defined by anybody else’s idea of where a line should be drawn’.
And Still I Rise is also a chance to highlight and exhibit for the first time several recently acquired works by women artists. For instance, Eugenia Lim’s New Australians (welcome stranger 1869/2015) 2015 explores her parents’ migration by revisiting the history of Chinese arrivals during the 1851–93 gold rush. The piece also challenges the whitewashing of Australian history, particularly the violent events that Chinese immigrants endured during this period. Lim connects this history to her experiences and the racial politics at the time the work was created in 2015, by making herself the subject of the photographic image screenprinted on an emergency blanket. Chun Yin Rainbow Chan’s Fruit Song 生果文 2022 honours her mother’s Weitou cultural heritage in Hong Kong, bringing awareness to their songs, language and traditions before they disappear.
Rubaba Haider, a Hazara refugee who fled Pakistan, is present through two watercolours The spider’s touch, how exquisitely fine! Feels at each thread and lives along the line (Alexander Pope) IV and V 2017. These works visually capture the intricate delicacy of a spider’s web as expressed in an 18th-century poem by Alexander Pope, An essay on man. They also evoke the artist’s memories of textile weaving, alluding to the trauma Haider witnessed in the wars she fled and the wounds she carries from her past, both literal and metaphorical.
Devi Seetharam’s Akasha Malli (Cork Flower) 2024 is part of her Brother, Fathers and Uncles series. Signifying the artist’s journey of self-discovery as a woman, and as a woman of colour, the painting portrays a gathering of men. Using sand to rub away the paint in layers visible in the textile folds, Seetharam creates an image where the men are unidentifiable, paralleling how women are often erased in male-dominated spaces.
A recent acquisition by Shireen Taweel Astro architecture 2023 presents a provocative exploration of migration – one that transcends the Earth. Inspired by the Arab sciences and celestial navigation instruments, her copper-plate prints imagine what it would be like to migrate to another planet, pushing the boundaries of what we conventionally understand as migration associated with colonial pasts.
Several artists were also commissioned specifically for this exhibition. Haji Oh, born in Japan of Korean ancestry and now based in Wollongong, is continuing her longstanding project Ama’s home/boat floating on memory with the colour of emptiness. Begun in 2018 and first shown in Kanazawa, Japan, the project is being expanded in Australia through a new work, Memories with the colour of emptiness (Sydney/Wollongong) 2024–25. In preparation for this exhibition, Haji led workshops in Sydney and Wollongong, inviting participants to bring doilies, which she used to create cyanotype prints. This project examines the influences on European and Asian cultures through the delicate art of embroidery and women’s labour, while also encouraging participants to reflect on the memories these objects held for them.
Suzann Victor, a Singapore-born artist who has lived in the Blue Mountains for more than 20 years, was the first female artist to represent Singapore at the Venice Biennale in 2001. While she has exhibited internationally, opportunities in Australia have been rare. For this exhibition, Victor created the large kinetic installation, Sea lantern II 2025, a work that interrogates colonial imagery in Southeast Asia. The work encourages viewers to reconsider what they see – or overlook – as acrylic lenses magnify and reveal the hidden histories in colonial photographs.
Jenna Mayilema Lee’s installation maan-ma danala: birdim-ba (language dillybag: steady persistent) 2025 delves into her experience working with Aboriginal words and Japanese paper techniques, as well as the relief and respite of being on Country in the Northern Territory during the big wet. Meanwhile, Mia Boe, who has Butchulla and Burmese ancestry, makes dolls from her collection of longyi textiles – garments worn by Burmese women and men. She explores the idea of how to express meaning through secret language.
Bic Tieu, who is of Vietnamese and Chinese heritage, was born in a refugee camp in Indonesia before arriving in Australia when she was a baby. Her work, which uses metal, lacquer and ceramics reflects her life growing up in Cabramatta and her connection to the cultures of Western Sydney. Tieu subtly integrates her own personal hybridity into her practice, exploring what it means to live in Australia, be both Vietnamese and Chinese, and how these identities inform her artistic expression.
Other artists have generously loaned works for this exhibition. Wendy Yu, a multimedia artist, merges dance and movement in her captivating video works that impart a sense of calligraphic painting. Kyra Mancktelow, a self-taught weaver of Quandamooka ancestry with links to Eulo, the South Sea islands and Vanuatu, memorialises her grandmother’s wedding dress, imagining it with traditional materials. Mandy Quadrio, whose work is inspired by her Trawlwoolway/Pairabeenee and Laremairremenner heritage in Tasmania, uses steel wool to create large cloaks, akin to possum skin cloaks – a moving commentary on the dangers of erasing one’s cultural identity in a colonial context. Gillian Kayrooz, born in Australia to Lebanese parents, uses her work to reflect the everyday experiences of families in Western Sydney. Her art speaks to the quiet respect and gratitude children of migrants feel for the sacrifices their parents made to build a better life in Australia.
These are personal and complex stories deserving of great consideration. I’m pleased that, in collaboration with Look and The Power Institute at the University of Sydney, this dedicated website was launched to coincide with the opening of the exhibition. It features biographies on all the artists and audio interviews where they answer the question: ‘What informs your artwork?’ Each artist was asked to respond in her own way, in her own voice. We invite you to return often, listen closely, and explore the many ways these artists shape and challenge our understanding of art today.
Natalie Seiz, curator, Asian Art
Art Gallery of New South Wales
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