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, and to those emerging leaders in the community. 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.

We are open 10am–5pm. Our exhibitions are always free.

Nien Schwarz

Nien Schwarz

Nien Schwarz

Large scale assemblages, installations and collages made of maps allude to Nien Schwarz’s experiences of working alongside geoscientists and living a nomadic field camp existence. The physical labour of negotiating unfamiliar terrain, collecting samples, securing sufficient food supplies and ritually assembling and collapsing space-saving gear informs part of her practice. 2006 marks 26 years of fieldwork experience. Half of these have taken place in arctic Canada, and the other half in outback Australia. Over My Shoulder is part reverence for the humbling experiences of immersing oneself in bush environments, and part lament over increasingly widespread destruction of natural habitats to fuel a misguided world economy.