MCA Australia announces Thomas J Price as the inaugural Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission artist

Visual Arts

 

MCA Australia announces Thomas J Price as the inaugural
Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission artist

Thomas J Price, Image courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth, © the artist, photograph: Ollie Adegboye

[17 October 2024, Sydney] The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA Australia) is delighted to announce Thomas J Price as the recipient of the inaugural Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission.

The announcement of Thomas J Price represents an exciting moment for the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia and Sydney. This is the first contemporary sculptural commission for the iconic Tallawoladah Lawn, in front of MCA Australia, overlooking Warrane, Sydney Harbour at Circular Quay, to be presented annually over the next three years.

Born in London in 1981, Thomas J Price is renowned for his large-scale sculptural works of fictional figures that bring together traditional sculpting methods with digital technology. In these works, the artist plays with scale, material and detail to challenge and surprise the viewer and confront preconceived attitudes towards representation and entrenched power structures.

In contrast to traditional public monuments commemorating historical figures, Price’s sculptural works reframe the ordinary as extraordinary and celebrate individuals engaged in everyday activity; disrupting the ways in which we predetermine value. In utilising Western sculptural traditions to elevate the everyday lives of people of colour, Price’s brilliantly “ordinary” sculptures prompt audiences to consider their own socially conditioned attitudes.

This landmark annual commissioning series on the historic and culturally significant site of Tallawoladah, advances Sydney’s position as one of Australia’s leading cultural destinations. The Commission offers an exceptional opportunity for millions of Australians and visitors to engage with world-leading contemporary art and ideas, beyond the walls of the Museum.

Thomas J Price’s newly created work will be unveiled in Spring 2025 and remain on public display until Autumn 2026.

The Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission is named in honour of Australian philanthropist Neil Balnaves AO (1944–2022) and made possible by the generous support of The Balnaves Foundation.

Tallawoladah is the traditional lands of the Gadigal people and has been home to stories, art and culture for over 65,000 years.

Suzanne Cotter, MCA Australia Director said, ‘We could not be more pleased to be announcing Thomas J Price as the first artist to create a new publicly sited sculpture for our inaugural Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission. Thomas’s work is boldly dramatic and irresistibly generous in its call to see one another as we are and its cues for deeper human connection. We are excited for the many visitors to this culturally and significant site to access and experience his art at all times of the day.’

Hamish Balnaves, CEO, The Balnaves Foundation said, ‘The Balnaves family is delighted to partner with the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia on this extraordinary project and we are excited that Thomas J Price will be the inaugural artist for the Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission. Price’s relatable, thought provoking, bold and engaging works resonate deeply with my father, Neil Balnaves’, life-long commitment to enrich people’s lives through art and this Commission is a fitting tribute to his life, legacy and memory.’

Artist Thomas J Price said, ’I’m honoured to be the first recipient of the inaugural Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission. Public sculpture has been a vital element of my practice for over two decades, dismantling perceptions of historical figures of power and presenting an alternative that celebrates us all.  For me, sculpture is about understanding your environment and your place in space, your connection to others and capacity for empathy. My ambition has always been that these works would bring communities closer together and live in the public realm as silent totems for change.’

Thomas J Price, Image courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth, © the artist, photograph: Ollie Adegboye

About the artist

Thomas J Price (b.1981, London) is one of Britain’s leading contemporary artists. Price’s practice extends beyond a strategy of figuration, harnessing the narrative power of performance, film, photography, animation and abstract sculpture consistently throughout his career.

Celebrated for his large-scale figurative sculptures, Price draws our attention to the psychological embodiment of his fictional characters, highlighting nuanced understandings of social signifiers and predetermined value.

Price studied at Chelsea College of Art, London before completing his MA at the Royal College of Art, London. He has exhibited widely internationally, including presentations at ARKEN Museum of Moderne Kunst, Copenhagen; Kunsthalle Krems, Austria; National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne; Royal Academy of Arts, London; Somerset House, London; The National Portrait Gallery, London; The Power Plant, Toronto, Canada and The Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wakefield, UK.

Price’s presentation, Witness, in collaboration with The Studio Museum in Harlem, was on view in Marcus Garvey Park, New York from 2021–2022. In June 2022, the artist unveiled Warm Shores, the first permanent public artwork to celebrate the contribution of the Windrush generation and their descendants in the UK, commissioned by Hackney Council, London.

Recent and forthcoming projects include the solo exhibition Matter of Place on display at Kunsthal Rotterdam, Netherlands (opened 5 October 2024); In-visible Bodies, Musée Rodin, Paris (opened 15 October 2024) and The Time is Always Now, Philadelphia Museum of Art, US (forthcoming, 9 November 2024). In 2025 the artist will present a new public commission for the V&A East Museum as part of the newly established East Bank campus at Olympic Park, London.

The artist’s work has been collected by major public and private art collections internationally. In 2009, Price was the recipient of the Arts Council England Helen Chadwick Fellowship.
About Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission
The Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission will present a large-scale sculptural work from a leading international or Australian contemporary artist from spring through to autumn each year from 2025–2028, creating memorable encounters with the best contemporary art and ideas for millions of Australians and visitors.

The Neil Balnaves Tallawoladah Lawn Commission series is supported by The Balnaves Foundation to celebrate the life of Neil Balnaves AO (1944–2022) and pay tribute to his vision and philanthropic contribution to the arts in Australia.
About Neil Balnaves AO (1944–2022)
In 2006, Neil Balnaves AO founded The Balnaves Foundation. Already an established philanthropist, Neil wanted to create a pathway for intergenerational giving, bringing his family together to help create a better Australia through the arts, education and medicine.

Prior to establishing the Foundation, Neil had a long and successful career in the media industry, including founding the Southern Star Group in 1988. As a film and TV executive, Neil was proud to have been involved in bringing many popular shows to Australian screens, including Water Rats, Blue Heelers, Big Brother, The Secret Life of Us, McLeod’s Daughters and Bananas in Pyjamas.

Neil was the Chairman of Ardent Leisure Group, one of Australia’s most successful owners and operators of premium leisure assets, from 2003 until 2016. Other former directorships include Hanna-Barbera Australia, Reed Consolidated Industries, Hamlyn Group, Taft Hardie, Southern Star Group and Southern Cross Broadcasting.

He was the Chancellor of Charles Darwin University, and a former Director and Trustee Member of Bond University, receiving an Honorary Doctorate of the Bond University in 2009. In addition, Neil was a Board Member of the Art Gallery of South Australia from 2013 to 2019, was a former member of the Advisory Council and Dean’s Circle at the University of New South Wales Faculty of Medicine, and in 2010 received an Honorary Doctorate of the University of New South Wales.

Neil was immensely proud to be appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2010, for his services to the community through philanthropic support for the arts, education, medical research and Indigenous programs, and to business.

Neil sadly passed away in February 2022 and is greatly missed by his family who honour his legacy, ensuring Neil’s vision for the Foundation, to create a better Australia, will continue.

Find out more about The Balnaves Foundation.

Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA Australia)
The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA Australia) presents, collects and engages with the art of our time. Guided by the principles of belonging, connection and influence, we aim to be the defining platform for contemporary art and ideas in Australia and beyond. Located on Sydney Harbour at Tallawoladah, a home to stories, art and culture for over 65,000 years, we connect the widest possible public to contemporary art through exhibitions, events, creative learning and access programs. Our evolving Collection of over 4,700 artworks is the only public collection in Australia dedicated to the work of living artists, with over a third represented by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. As an independent, not-for-profit organization, MCA Australia raises over 80% of its revenue each year through donations and commercial activities to deliver its artistic and engagement programs.

Museum of Contemporary Art Australiagu wawa Cadigalmirung nura badu garrigarrang*

The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the traditional owners of the land and waters upon which the MCA stands.
*Language translation undertaken with assistance from Professor Jakelin Troy and endorsed by local community Elders and the MCA Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Advisory Group.

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