Latrobe Regional Gallery in Morwell has reopened with a new look and a new direction that is set to make the gallery a significant drawcard for people from across the region and beyond.
Community members and art lovers joined today to celebrate the reopening of the gallery following its five-month refurbishment project which has transformed the gallery inside and out.
The $1.1 million project, which received $770,000 from the Latrobe Valley Authority, included an upgrade of the building façade, foyer and entrance, enhanced lighting and improvements to accessibility.
Behind the scenes, the project included improvements to storage, security and climate control systems which has brought the gallery in line with international gallery standards.
The refurbishment was an important step in the gallery’s strategy to become a cultural destination for the region, creating the facilities needed to host high quality exhibitions from across the globe.
This weekend the gallery will open a major exhibition of work by internationally acclaimed Belgian surrealist artist René Magritte, whose works are some of the most recognised and influential contemporary artworks of the 20th century.
An Australian exclusive, René Magritte: The Revealing Image, Photos and Films focuses on Magritte’s photographic works and will include 132 original photographs and eight films by the artist.
The works, which were discovered in the mid-1970s, more than ten years after Magritte’s death, offer a rare insight into the artist’s private world. Many of the items have never been shown in Australia.
The exhibition is a collaboration between the Magritte Foundation in Belgium and is expected to attract thousands of art lovers to the region in the months ahead.
René Magritte: The Revealing Image, Photos and Films will be on show at Latrobe Regional Gallery from 19 August – 19 November 2017.
Buy your tickets here