Old Parliament House: Exhibitions Feed

Beyond Reasonable Drought

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +1100

Online exhibition

Beyond Reasonable Drought is an Old Parliament House travelling exhibition in association with the MAP Group — Many Australian Photographers. It features images by some of Australia’s best photographers, documenting the impact of the drought on the land, people and psyche of rural and urban Australia.

The MAP Group is a non-profit association of about 50 photographers with a shared passion for and commitment to high-quality, independent documentary image making. The group is led by Andrew Chapman, who has a long history of initiating rural-based projects. The MAP Group donates all imagery to the towns and people involved—a gift that enriches their historical archives in a unique and substantial way.

For this project, MAP sought inspiration from the work of the highly acclaimed Farm Security Administration (FSA). During the 1930s, when the American mid-west faced crippling drought and economic collapse, the FSA (as part of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s ‘New Deal’) brought that situation to the attention of the wider world. The FSA photographers achieved that by creating serious, compassionate imagery which, 70 years later, is still incredibly powerful.

MAP Group members have paid homage to the FSA with Beyond Reasonable Drought. Although not comparing their efforts to the extraordinary achievement of the FSA, they have aspired to produce a comprehensive, sensitive, ethically sound and powerful body of work that is a permanent, diverse and valuable interpretation of Australia’s current long-term drought.

» Visit the exhibition website

Billy Hughes at War

Sun, 01 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +1100

From Sunday, 01 June 2008 until Sunday, 01 February 2009

You can explore the activities and resources on this website to learn about Prime Minister Billy Hughes, the conscription debate and Australia’s involvement in the peace negotiations.

Prime Minister William Morris (Billy) Hughes led the nation through most of the First World War. A complex and controversial figure, he was known as a man of extremes, inspiring admiration and provoking hatred in equal measure.

His attempts to introduce conscription caused huge rifts, in political parties and the nation. Hughes supported the British Empire but also stood up for Australian interests against other Allied leaders at the negotiations for the treaty of peace at Versailles in France.

Hughes often disregarded social and political conventions, yet won support with his eloquence and wit. From humble Welsh origins, he was shrewd and wily, and became known, for his championing of the Australian troops, as ‘The Little Digger’.

» View the Billy Hughes at War exhibition website

The Australian Prime Ministers Centre

Tue, 20 May 2008 00:00:00 +1100

Permanent exhibition

Note: the Australian Prime Ministers Centre exhibition will close for relocation in late January 2009, and will re-open as part of our new exhibition galleries in May 2009.

Do you know which former prime minister was present at the hanging of Ned Kelly? Or which one used to work as a miner before he was prime minister? Or which one was nicknamed ‘Tosspot Toby’ by The Bulletin because of his love of good food and wine?

Visit the Australian Prime Ministers Centre to discover these and many more quirky facts about our former prime ministers. Interactive displays and personal objects will give you a look into the fascinating lives of these 26 men.

» Visit the APMC website

Mrs Prime Minister-Public Image, Private Lives

Thu, 26 Jan 2006 00:00:00 +1100

From Thursday, 26 January 2006 until Sunday, 27 January 2008

This is a touring version of one of Old Parliament House’s most popular exhibitions.

The exhibition introduces visitors to the 25 remarkable women who have filled the role of prime minister’s wife from 1901 to 2007 and includes previously-unseen images from the private collections of former prime ministers’ wives.

It reveals the ‘woman behind the title’, examining the unique contribution, style and structure each brought to the position, and explores the realities of being married to one of the nation’s most powerful men—including the difficulties of trying to balance public and private life, the glamour, the hardships, the passions, and of course, the politics.

» View the online exhibition