At PICA we recognise that we are situated within the unceded lands of the Whadjuk people of the Noongar Nation. We pay our respects and offer our gratitude to Elders past and present. We acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and the importance of their care and continued connection to culture, community and Country.

Always was, always will be.

Galleries are closed today. Our exhibitions are always free.

Andy Butler

Quick Response Artist-in-Residence

Quick Response Artist-in-Residence

WA-born and Melbourne-based artist and curator Andy Butler will spend his residency at PICA undertaking artistic research with the Berndt Museum of Anthropology at the University of Western Australia. Continuing his interest in the spiritual yearning of the upper classes and the collections, personal papers and archives of anthropologists in the Indo-Pacific, he will look at the Berndt’s large personal collection of Asian art and antiquities. This collection was acquired during their lifetime and originally displayed in their Peppermint Grove home before entering the Berndt Museum collection in the early 90s on their passing. 

Working with Boorloo-based musician and composer Tiffany Ha, they’ll develop a vocal score in response to the collection and related archival material, informed by the breathwork and meditation techniques of eastern spiritual movements that boomed in Walyalup/Fremantle during the era of the Berndt’s collecting. 

About the artist

Andy Butler’s practice employs moving image, performance, drawing and text to consider strategies for maintaining hope and optimism at a time of political upheaval. With a focus on the political currents of the Indo-Pacific region, his work probes the machinations of power, imperialism, capital and the cultural narratives, structures and institutions that maintain them. 
 
Andy has undertaken several international residencies, including those at Green Papaya Art Projects, Manila, Philippines; Powerhouse, Sydney; Artspace Aotearoa, New Zealand; and the Humboldt Forum, Berlin. His recent exhibitions include Future Remains: The 2024 Macfarlane Commissions Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne (2024); This is the house that jack built, Artspace Aotearoa, New Zealand (2024); Collective Unease, Ian Potter Museum of Art, University of Melbourne (2022–2023); Housewarming, Arts House, Melbourne (2021); All-in-One Solution for Glowing Fairness, Bus Projects, Melbourne (2019); and Hyphenated, The Substation, Melbourne (2018). 
 
Andy’s art practice is complemented by his work as a writer and curator. His writing on art and politics has been published to wide acclaim, including in frieze, Art + Australia, Overland, Meanjin and more. He was previously curator at West Space, Melbourne, with recent independent curatorial projects at the Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne and UTS Gallery, Sydney. 

Supporters

PICA’s Studio Program is supported by PICA’s Art Ambassadors. Andy Butler’s studio residence is supported by The University of Western Australia and the Berndt Museum. 

The University of Western Australia