Fulgora

Coinciding with Sydney WorldPride 2023 and the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, the National Art School is delighted to present the group exhibition Fulgora curated by video artist and independent curator EO Gill.

Fulgora presents a suite of commissioned video works by 5 Australian-based artists that are punctuated by a selection of films programmed in collaboration with LA-based collective Dirty Looks Inc.

The fulgora, more commonly known as “the lantern fly”, is a species of winged insect with a large, bulbous proboscis. Originally thought to produce light, the proboscis has no obvious practical or survivalist function. The entomologist Roger Caillois uses the useless proboscis to define insect mimicry as a ‘luxury’ rather than something to do with natural survival. The fly’s unique endowment points to a decadent excess of evolution.

The fulgora symbolises figures of luxuriance, characterised by delight in perversion, indulgence and pleasure on the one hand, and evasion, disappearance and deception on the other.

By extension, Fulgora speaks to luxuriant video practices that disrupt conventional acts of looking and force us to ask where our pleasure begins.

Dirty Looks Inc
Dirty Looks Inc is a non-profit platform for queer film, video, and performance founded in 2011. Using film and time-based art to illuminate queer histories and liminal spaces across Los Angeles and New York City, Dirty Looks traces contemporary queer aesthetics through historical works, presenting quintessential GLBTQ film and video, alongside up-and-coming artists and filmmakers.

Opening Hours:
Monday to Saturday 11am to 5pm