2026 Past Exhibitions

Bundaberg Regional Art Gallery

Looking Out, Looking In: Exploring the Self-Portrait | QAGOMA

Contemporary society has become increasingly attuned to the self-image through social media’s 'selfie' culture and reality TV, providing a fascinating backdrop in which to examine the self-portrait today.

Looking Out, Looking In explores the genre of the self-portrait, a distinct form of portraiture in which subject and artist are one.

The exhibition examines the human tendency to envisage oneself. While some of the artists look inwards and reflect on themselves in self-effacing ways, or may just be intrigued by their own image, others seek to project an image or identity in more flamboyant displays.

Image: James Gleeson, Australia, 1915–2008, Structural emblems of a friend (self portrait) 1941, Oil on canvas board, 46 x 35.6cm. Purchased 1984 with the assistance of the John Darnell Bequest. Collection: Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. © QAGOMA

Biomorphism | Penny Bennett

Biomorphism builds on Penny Bennett’s ongoing exploration of the connections between art, biology and the environment.

Using stitched, recycled paper animated with subtle electronic movement, Bennett creates delicate, living-like forms that invite viewers to look closer at the unseen beauty of nature.

Inspired by scientific illustrators such as Ernst Haeckel, her work merges traditional craft with contemporary technology to explore sustainability, curiosity and care for the natural world.

Reflecting the biodiversity of the Bundaberg Region, Biomorphism encourages audiences to slow down, engage thoughtfully and rediscover the wonder in organic forms and everyday materials.

Image: Penny Bennett, The Theory of Purposelessness

Home Bodies | Ana Daniels

Home Bodies is a sculptural exhibition that interrogates the politics and tensions of the domestic sphere, particularly as they relate to queer experience. Familiar comforts - pillows, blankets, bedding - are transformed into uncanny textile sculptures fused with industrial materials, acting as proxy bodies under strain.

The exhibition explores how queer bodies navigate the home, a space often marked by both rejection and self-determination. It asks: how can softness persist in the face of rigidity, and what joy exists in the gaps between social structures?

Ana Daniels is a Bundaberg-born artist and current Master of Philosophy candidate at QUT, who first exhibited in the student exhibition 'Emerge' at Bundaberg Regional Galleries nearly a decade ago.  

Image: Ana Daniels, Home Bodies, installation view, 2026