Rosalie Gascoigne Retrospective Opens at National Gallery of Australia

Rosalie Gascoigne returns home in major National Gallery retrospective

From 24 October 2026 to 14 February 2027, Rosalie Gascoigne brings together over 80 significant works spanning the artist's career, offering a major retrospective of her pioneering practice and deep connection to Kamberri/Canberra, which she called home for over 50 years.

Aotearoa/New Zealand-born Rosalie Gascoigne (1917 – 1999) is renowned for her remarkable ability to transform discarded everyday materials into poetic sculptural assemblages. Inspired by nature, Gascoigne's art reflects the diversity and nuances of the Australian landscape.

Drawing inspiration from Kamberri/Canberra and the surrounding region, Gascoigne developed a distinctive visual language that reimagined the ordinary and revealed the poetry of place. Constructed from diverse materials including retro-reflective road signs, soft drink crates, enamelware, feathers and weathered wood, her assemblages combine abstraction, memory and wordplay, transforming overlooked materials into compelling works of extraordinary beauty.

The retrospective includes works drawn from public and private collections around Australia and the key work Parrot country 1983 from Aotearoa/New Zealand. Providing insight into Gascoigne's artistic development, the exhibition features some of her earliest exhibited works, including box assemblages, alongside floor-based installations and wall works. Also included are the last works Gascoigne created aged 82, Metropolis, 1999 and the major ten-panel installation Earth, 1999. Other highlights include Feathered fence, 1978-79 her retro-reflective road-sign works from the mid-1980s through to the 1990s, and the National Gallery's recent acquisition Feathered Chairs, 1978.

Rosalie Gascoigne reveals her international relevance in relation to movements such as Land Art, Assemblage and Arte Povera. The exhibition traces Gascoigne's artistic journey from her emergence into the Australian art world in the 1970s to international acclaim at the Venice Biennale, highlighting the bold experimentation and inventive use of materials that established her as a leading figure in contemporary art. At a time when artists were challenging traditional approaches to artmaking, Gascoigne developed a distinctive practice that expanded the possibilities of assemblage and installation art.

The exhibition and accompanying publication have been produced in close collaboration with Gascoigne's family. Her children, Hester and Toss Gascoigne, together with the late Martin Gascoigne, gifted rare archival and studio materials that are being exhibited for the first time.

Dr Deborah Hart, Head Curator, Australian Art, National Gallery: 'By the early 1980s Rosalie Gascoigne was well on her way to becoming one of the most significant artists of the 20th century. She envisioned the environment anew, producing work of remarkable vitality that came from her deep and sustained familiarity with her surrounds. While she extended an Australian landscape tradition, she also inspired a younger generation of contemporary artists through her courage and inventive approach to materials and making.'

Gascoigne's career was closely connected to the National Gallery. In the 1970s she came to know the Gallery's inaugural Director, James Mollison, whose ambitious vision for building the national collection exposed her to many of the most exciting developments in contemporary art and helped shape her artistic thinking.

Nick Mitzevich, Director, National Gallery: 'Rosalie Gascoigne is one of the most important artists of the 20th century and changed the way many Australians see the materials and landscapes around them. Her assemblages reveal extraordinary beauty in overlooked and discarded materials, and they continue to resonate with audiences around the world. It is especially meaningful to be presenting this major retrospective at the National Gallery, given the profound connection that Gascoigne felt with the local environment and with the evolution of the collection under the first director, James Mollison.'

Rosalie Gascoigne is a free exhibition on display at the National Gallery from 24 October 2026 – 14 February 2027. The exhibition is a Know My Name project, the National Gallery initiative elevating the work of all women artists to enhance understanding of their powerful contribution to Australia's cultural life.

PROGRAMS

Rosalie's studio

Saturday 24 October 2026 – Sunday 14 February 2027 | 10am – 5pm | Level 1, Gallery 6, free.

Presented alongside the retrospective is an engagement space – Rosalie's studio, where visitors can create and play with special materials from the studio of artist Rosalie Gascoigne, generously gifted by the artist's family for learning and making.

Opening Address: Rosalie Gascoigne with Dr Deborah Hart

Saturday 24 October 2026 | 10.30–11.20am | James Fairfax Theatre, free.

Step into the world of one of Australia's most distinctive and influential artists as Dr Deborah Hart, Head Curator, Australian Art, shares unique insight into the life and work of Rosalie Gascoigne.

Excursion to Mount Stromlo: Celebrating the life of Rosalie Gascoigne

Saturday 24 October 2026 | 10.30am – 3.30pm | James Fairfax Theatre and Mount Stromlo, ticketed.

Journey by bus to Mount Stromlo and immerse yourself in the landscape that inspired Rosalie Gascoigne. Enjoy a picnic lunch and conversations with Hester and Toss Gascoigne. Hosted by Dr Deborah Hart. Includes entry to Opening Address: Rosalie Gascoigne with Deborah Hart.

Friday Art Talks

Friday 6, 13 & 20 November 2026 | 12pm – 12.45pm | Rosalie Gascoigne exhibition space/ James Fairfax Learning Studio, free.

Over three Fridays in November, we invite you to step into a world of reimagined objects and found materials as we examine the life and practice of Rosalie Gascoigne. Uncover the extremes and the nuance of the Australian landscape as captured in the artist's unique and powerful assemblages.

Rosalie Gascoigne Exhibition Tours

Monday 26 October 2026 – Sunday 14 February 2027 | Daily, 3pm | Level 1, Main Foyer, free.

Unlock a deeper understanding of the Rosalie Gascoigne exhibition with a free one-hour tour led by a National Gallery Voluntary Guide.

STORIES & IDEAS

The Poetry of Place and the Commonplace

Dr Deborah Hart, Head Curator, Australian Art, discusses the life and work of Gascoigne, exploring the artist's deep connection to her local environment and her international relevance.

Rosalie Gascoigne | Exhibition film

The exhibition is accompanied by a new short film written by filmmaker Catherine Hunter. Placing the viewer by Gascoigne's side in her studio and among the landscapes that inspired her, the film draws on a rich archive of interviews with Gascoigne herself alongside rarely seen photographs from the Gascoigne family collection.

The Gleeson Tapes | Rosalie Gascoigne

The NGA Art Talks podcast revisits a long form interview between Gascoigne and the artist James Gleeson, recorded in 1980 as part of Gleeson's historic oral history project. The Gleeson Tapes is an ongoing series revisiting key conversations between Gleeson and influential Australian artists including Grace Crowley, John Brack and Inge King. Listen online or via your favourite podcast app.