Overview of the Australia at the Venice Biennale 2024 project 

Australia Pavilion at the 60th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia 

Artist:  Archie Moore 

Curator:  Ellie Buttrose 

Commissioner:  Creative Australia 

Exhibition dates:  20 April – 24 November 2024  

Exhibition title:  kith and kin 

Artwork credit: kith and kin 2024 
Ink on polyester, water, composite board, paint, aluminium, steel, pigment and clay crayon, methyl acetate 
499.8 x 1588 x 1498cm 
Artwork courtesy of the artist and The Commercial 

About kith and kin 

‘kith and kin is a memorial dedicated to every living thing that has ever lived, it is a space for quiet reflection on the past, the present and the future’ Archie Moore 

First Nations peoples of Australia are among the oldest continuous living cultures on earth; Archie Moore’s kith and kin affirms this by tracing the artist’s Kamilaroi and Bigambul relations over 65,000+ years. His choice of materials for this celestial map of names — fragile chalk on blackboard — addresses the insufficient dissemination of Indigenous histories.  

The complexity of First Nations kinship systems exceeds the standard genealogical chart. Archie’s extensive drawing captures the common ancestors of all humans, emphasising our kinship responsibilities to each other. In a Kamilaroi understanding of time, past, present and future are co-present. By placing tens of thousands of years of kin on a single continuum, Archie enfolds audiences within the everywhen.  

While many of the stories in kith and kin are specific to the artist’s family, they mirror narratives throughout the world. Through this lens Moore highlights our shared ancestry and humanity: through the interconnectedness of people, place and time.  

On 20 April 2024, kith and kin received the prestigious Golden Lion for Best National Participation at the Venice Biennale. The work was later acquired by the Australian Government and gifted to the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) in Brisbane, in partnership with Tate, London. 

Discover more about its journey at kithandkin.me. 

Australian artists in the main exhibition  

Esteemed First Nations artists, Marlene Gilson  and  Naminapu Maymuru-White , presented significant bodies of work as part of  Foreigners Everywhere – Stranieri Ovunque, curated by Adriano Pedrosa.   

Their presentation was supported by Creative Australia. Read the media release.