Nan Goldin: The Ballad Of Sexual Dependancy

Image: © Nan Goldin

The Art Gallery of Ballarat is excited to present Nan Goldin: The Ballad of Sexual Dependency on loan from the National Gallery of Australian (NGA).

Opening on 2 March, the exhibition will make its Victorian debut in Ballarat as part of PHOTO 2024 a statewide international photo festival. Nan Goldin: The Ballad of Sexual Dependency is a highly anticipated exhibition.

Nan Goldin is an American artist whose work explores subcultures, moments of intimacy, the impacts of the HIV/AIDS and opioid epidemics on her communities, and photography as a tool for social activism. Goldin’s work is always born out of her own experience, and her deeply personal and candid portraiture acts as a visual autobiography. The Ballad of Sexual Dependency began life as a slide show and was published as a now-iconic book in 1986 that established Goldin as a major contemporary artist.

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January

Brisbane: Until 13 July 2025. Amateur Brisbane photographer Alfred Henrie Elliott (1870-1954) extraordinary images lay dormant for decades until they were discovered only recently. This exhibition is curated by seven Brisbane photographers.

Perth: Until 18 May 2025. Henry Roy – Impossible Island draws on 40-years of recollections and observations as it brings together 113 photos taken from 1983 to 2023.

Sydney: Until 31 Dec 2025. PIX, Australia’s first pictorial news weekly, is brought to life in this exhibition, showcasing its archived images and stories for the very first time.

Melbourne: until 16 Feb 2025. Petrina Hicks works with photography to create large-scale photographs that draw from mythology, fables, and historical art imagery to reframe the contemporary female experience.

February

Sydney: Until 30 June. The photographs in Max Dupain: Student Life were taken at the University of Sydney in the early 1950s, a period of rapid change marked by the politics of the Cold War.

Sydney: Until 8 Mar 2025. While Dean’s fantasias might seem like digitally conjured dreamscapes, they are an extraordinary feat of practical effects, with subjects in actual gardens and elaborately constructed underwater sets.

Melbourne. One off event 23 February. The first solo photography exhibition from international cinematographer and producer 'The Squid' – showcasing the wild underwater dance images conveying human emotion and the magic of connection.

March

Sydney: 1–9 March. Outdoor exhibition @ The Opera House. The Lipstick Effect exhibits works by 18 acclaimed Australian female photographers with ideas from past and present.

Sydney: One off event. 28 March 7pm. Join OCULI at ESCAC by Brand X for their new community event OCULI presents, where collective members curate a selection of photography projections for your enjoyment.

April

Organised by the Art Gallery Society of NSW, join an eight-day study tour in April exploring ‘photography as art’ in the City of Light: with private visits to galleries, discussions with leading photography curators and more!