In partnership with Bathurst Regional Art Gallery (BRAG), Artspace will present As Above, So
Below by Maddison Gibbs as part of Artspace’s ongoing Banner Series.
Maddison Gibbs | As Above, So Below
3 July – 4 October 2026 | Opening Thursday 2 July, 6-9pm – RSVP
Artspace, 43-51 Cowper Wharf Roadway, Woolloomooloo NSW 2011
Gunu Baakandji artist Maddison Gibbs’ practice draws on a visual language that honours First Nations
histories while affirming the strength and continuity of Indigenous futures. Bringing together imagery
inspired by Indigenous plants, medicinal knowledge and First Nations sky knowledge, her work reflects
enduring practices of caring for Country and sharing knowledge across generations.
Co-commissioned by Artspace and BRAG, As Above, So Below centres on the firewheel tree (Stenocarpus
sinuatus), a medicinal plant with a long history of use in Aboriginal healing practices. In Gibbs’ interpretation,
the flower also evokes a campfire or gathering place – a site for storytelling, ceremony and connection.
The work reflects the longstanding Indigenous practice of cultural burning, in which small-scale cool burns are
used to regenerate Country while supporting biodiversity and reducing the risk of bushfires.
Composed of two corresponding images, one rendered as the inversion of the other, the banner invites a
shifting visual encounter. Forms emerge and recede between positive and negative space, revealing hidden
layers of botanical and cosmological imagery. This interplay of visibility and concealment creates a sense
of depth and expansiveness, evoking celestial space and the interconnectedness of natural and cultural systems.
These references recognise the integral role of sky knowledge within First Nations cultures, where
astronomy, storytelling and navigation are closely intertwined.
Positioned in the public realm, As Above, So Below becomes both a celebration of Country and a proposition
for cultural renewal, foregrounding practices of healing and resilience through the ongoing transmission of
ancestral knowledge.
ing institutional partnership supporting the development, presentation and visibility of regional NSW
artists. The Banner Series is supported by Andrew Cameron AM and Cathy Cameron.
Artist: Maddison Gibbs
Curator: Zoe Theodore
The Banner Series brings a rotating series of artworks to the exterior of The Gunnery building. The
commissioned banners are a site for artists to contemplate, disrupt and experiment, providing a lively,
constantly changing enhancement to our built environment.
The highly visible banners with sightlines to the city provide a strong connection to Woolloomooloo and
surrounding suburbs and broadcast Artspace as a cultural destination.
The series includes four artist commissions each year.
Artspace is located at 43-51 Cowper Wharf Roadway, Woolloomooloo NSW 2011. Plan your visit
Bathurst Regional Art Gallery is supported by the NSW Government through Create NSW.
