WHO WE ARE
We are a group of women focused on organising themed exhibitions. We welcome emerging artist from culturally diverse background, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, LGBTQIA+ practitioners and people with lived experience of disability.
We want to involve emerging artists to contribute visual, audio, or written artworks to collaborative exhibitions. We are open to and welcome new and unexpected interpretations and we are looking for being inclusive and diverse, aiming to tell a different story.
We think we should be more aware how art could be deceptive and subjective. Disability and race often have been misrepresented and stereotypically depicted in the history and media, and after some research we realised that often it’s because people don’t get to tell their own narrative.
We are interested in knowing underrepresented people’s point of view and stories through art, what’s their point of view in themes as death, poverty, immigration, civil rights, inequality, national identity? We believe that knowing different point of views, we get the chance to unlearn preconceptions and learn empathy and how to be more open with each other.
THE TEAM
Roberta
First one out in our “meet the team” series it’s Roberta! Roberta grew up in a town called Cento in Northern Italy, her favorite part about it was the architecture and obviously the food, as well as growing up with a group of amazing friends. She’s in her second year of Bachelor of Arts (Photography) at RMIT and she’s planning to go for a Master of Art Management when she finishes.
Building EACExhibitions came out of a passion to connect with people and create a place to exchange ideas, brainstorm, collaborate, and contribute. The collective also grew out of a need to flesh out ideas that she felt weren’t being covered enough in her degree. “I think we should be more aware how photography could be deceptive and subjective. Disability and race often have been misrepresented and stereotypically depicted in the history and media, and after some research I realised that often it’s because people don’t get to tell their own narrative“. She’s interested in underrepresented points of views and stories on themes like death, poverty, immigration, civil rights, inequality, and national identity. “ I believe that knowing different point of views, we get the chance to unlearn preconceptions and learn empathy and how to be more open with each other”. She doesn’t want to restrict the mediums that the collective shows and enjoys showcasing different mediums and skills.
When Roberta isn’t managing EACExhibitions she’s playing video games, watching movies, reading, hanging out with her cats, cooking, and learning new things. Anything to fill up these iso-days! She broke her leg and lost her job but UNI assignments have kept her afloat, as well as virtual pub quiz nights on Tuesdays… and the occasional day drinking sesh.
Why is art and specifically death positive art interesting and important to you?
Growing up in Italy, I was surrounded by its rich historical architecture, which spans almost 3,500 years. During my childhood, my family would take long car trips across Italy for our summer vacations. I would often look out the window, imagining a fantasy world consisting of all the castles and abandoned mansions that would pass by, some at least a thousand years old. My favourite architecture style is Byzantine-Gothic, with its dark coloured mosaics, stained glass windows and ribbed vaults.
The ability to see beauty in darkness and decay has accompanied me all my life and help me to face my fears and issues. I cannot look at an old object or building and wonder about who once owned it. What was their story and what happened to them? I often create a surreal and imaginary story about it in my head and use it as inspiration to create my art.
Neon triangle
Roberta Govoni
Xintong
Next up in our “meet the team” series is Xintong! Xintong grew up in China and lived with her parents in Zhengzhou city in He’nan province. She loved the food and the history of the different places. She later moved to the historical city Xi’an to study a 4 year bachelor degree where her best memories are of spending time with her friends.
Xintong is currently in her last semester of a masters degree of Arts Management at RMIT. She was ready for an opportunity and was excited to see Roberta was looking for people to build a virtual exhibition with! Xintongs graduation thesis actually happens to be on virtual exhibitions, so it was perfect! Robertas enthusiasm helped her get over her nerves about feeling inexperienced and was instead excited to work in a new team.
When Xintong isn’t working on putting together Death in a Box she’s playing games, checking out exhibitions, and obsessing over pop-stars. Her craziest moment so far this year was when she was travelling from China to Melbourne and had to make a last minute trip to Phuket and spend 15 days there before entering Australia!
Why is art and specifically death positive art interesting and important to you?
Regarding death, Xintong has a sense of awe over the subject, especially after the outbreak of COVID-19. Many of her friends also suffer from depression and anxiety which has pushed her to research articles about sucide and depression patients. Gradually, the fear of death became less scary to her. It made her feel that its existence would make the world more real, and gradually she stopped avoiding the topic.
Contrast
Xintong Wang
Louise
Louise grew up in Stockholm Sweden. Her favorite part of it was the constant proximity to nature. Wherever you went you weren’t far away from the water or from a forest.
Currently in her last semester of a Bachelor of Art (Fine Art) at RMIT, Louise is learning that sometimes you have to make the opportunities yourself. She has experience working in a gallery, art events, and volunteering at an ARI but nothing where she bears most of the responsibility and the decision making. Joining and building EACExhibitions is a passion project that lets her and the team build their own narrative and gain experience.
When she’s not busy working on EACE projects Louise is binging shows with her partner, cooking, and reading fantasy books. To cope with 2020 being well… 2020, she started doing yoga in the morning and drinking wine in the evening. It’s all about balance people. As well as weekly video calls with friends and family across the globe.
Why is art and especially death positive art important to you?
“I’ve been really blessed that I haven’t experienced much death in my life”. Part of her arts practice does focus on trauma though. Traumas get processed through healing and those methods and stories of healing are of interest to her. “I kept hearing at the start of COVID-19 in March and April that ‘we are all going through a collective grieving’. I think accepting grief is incredibly important as well as finding processes to heal when we are ready”. Death positive art is a healing process. It’s a way to grieve, to laugh, to accept, and to move on.
Dying Leaf Progression
Louise Samuelsson
Jade Armstrong
Jade grew up in a small British town called Knutsford. Her favourite memories there were walking through the countryside to a cosy pub for Sunday lunch, long chats over tea with family and exploring old historic buildings.⠀
⠀
Currently in her second year of a Bachelor of Fine Art, majoring in Sculpture at RMIT, Jade has been thinking a lot about the parallels between the fading of nature and the ageing of people. When she saw the description of the collective, she felt this put into words and created an outlet for what she was exploring.⠀
She is keen to learn from others about their understanding of death and their interpretations of this theme and also to give opportunities to people whose stories may not otherwise have been told.⠀
⠀
When she is not helping with the EACExhibitions, she enjoys being creative, practicing ballet, yoga, reading, cooking and juggling! She got through the pandemic lockdown with meditation and long chats about nothing with her family.⠀
⠀
Why is art and specifically death positive art interesting and important to you?
I believe death is something that touches us all in our own interesting ways. I am interested in death positive art as a way to visualise the experience you have had so you as an artist, and others seeing the work, can relate to it and to help them move forward.⠀
Bitter Fractal
Jade Armstrong
JOIN OUR MAILING LIST
EACExhibitions would like to pay respects to Wurundjeri Elders, past, present and emerging, to the Elders from other communities and to any other Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders who might encounter or participate in our shows
find us on