Veiled Histories: Works by leading First Nations artists - Jennifer Herd (MBarbarum) and Joanne Currie Nalingu (Gungurri)

6 October 2026 to 19 March 2027

Veiled Histories: Works by leading First Nations artists - Jennifer Herd (MCBarbarum) and Joanne Currie Nalingu (Gungurri) is a moving exploration of identity, history and resilience. The exhibition captures the artists’ enduring careers – from Jennifer’s shields symbolising strength and protection, to Joanne’s distinctive linear patterning expressing her deep spiritual connection to the river. Together, their art addresses the historical marginalisation of urban First Nations voices – once deemed 'ethnographic' and outside dominant cultural narratives – challenging and reshaping Western perceptions of Aboriginal art. 

In Queensland, the rise of influential art collectives like Campfire Group (1991–2002) where Jennifer and Joanne first met, ProppaNOW (2003– ), with Jennifer Herd as a founding member, alongside key commercial galleries such as Brisbane’s FireWorks Gallery (1993– ), and the introduction of the Bachelor of Contemporary Australian Indigenous Art at the Queensland College of Art and Design in 1993, have significantly reshaped the cultural landscape.

These pivotal developments have played a critical role in elevating the visibility of contemporary First Nations artists and their practices while expanding public understanding of First Nations peoples’ experiences. 

In developing Veiled Histories, Caloundra Regional Gallery collaborated with Jennifer Herd (MBarbarum) and Joanne Currie Nalingu (Gungurri) and FireWorks Gallery to source new and earlier works, creating an exhibition that reveals the artists’ evolving practices and personal journeys.

Powerfully evocative art urges you to think not only about the subject depicted before you, but also about why art matters in our lives. Veiled Histories is an exhibition bringing together two powerfully evocative artists whose work declares forthright Aboriginal perspectives crafted from their own, often deeply personal, experiences.

- Dr Sally Butler, Veiled Histories exhibition catalogue (2022), published by Caloundra Regional Gallery

Caloundra Regional Gallery Manager and Curator Jo Duke examines connections to the past for both Indigenous and non-indigenous peoples:

"Throughout the exhibition, embedded within these beautifully visual works, you will discover elements which expose hard truths of first contact and the impact on the First peoples of these lands."

"Jennifer's works speak of Indigenous experiences, both from the lens of history and the now, of frontier fighting and wars; of traditions lost, revived and shared. While Joanne's layered works link rediscovered languages and patterns of her Country Maranoa, anchored within the ebbs and flows of the river which drifts across the surface of many of her works."

"The river, for Joanne, continues to be an important metaphor of constant moving and changing; what is kept and what is lost and what is found."

Banner image: Jennifer Herd (MBarbarum), Warriors, 2008. Acrylic on canvas, 90 x 90 x 2 cm. Private Collection | Joanne Currie Nalingu (Gungurri), Book River Light (diptych), 2010. Acrylic on canvas, 75 x 100 x 3 cm | Jennifer Herd (MBarbarum), Target, 2008. Acrylic on canvas, 120 x 120 x 3 cm. All images courtesy of the artists and FireWorks Gallery, Brisbane.

Veiled Histories: Works by leading First Nations artists - Jennifer Herd (MBarbarum) and Joanne Currie Nalingu (Gungurri) is a touring exhibition curated by the Caloundra Regional Gallery and presented in partnership with Sunshine Coast Council and Museums & Galleries Queensland (M&G QLD) with support from FireWorks Gallery. This project has been assisted by the Australian Government's Visions of Australia program. M&G QLD and this project are supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland. M&G QLD is a member of NETS Australia. NETS Australia is assisted by the Visual Art, Craft and Design Framework, an initiative of the Australian, State and Territory Governments.