Matthew Harris

Questions of value, displacement, conservation, and restitution underpin Matthew Harris’s practice. Working with materials such as ochre (natural earth pigments), he produces forms that evoke Aboriginal sculptural artefacts circulating within institutional collections. The artist engages these histories critically, without claiming a singular or representative position. Through painting and sculpture, he combines minimal abstraction with references to art history and elements of kitsch, creating dissonances that destabilise established hierarchies of value and taste. Often infused with humour and an attention to material histories, his work places visibility and absence in tension, highlighting the complex dynamics of cultural memory.

The Biennale de Lyon acknowledges all First Nations peoples of Australia, their Traditional Custodians of the lands, and Elders past and present. We honour the enduring strength, diversity, and richness of First Nations artistic and cultural practices. We recognise First Nations peoples as Australia's first artists, whose creative traditions have been sustained across millennia and continue to shape the Nation's cultural landscape today.

In collaboration with Fondation OPALE
With the support of the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body
With the support of the Australian Embassy in France