Transmissions: Archiving HIV/AIDS - Melbourne 1979-2014

Transmissions is an exhibition of manuscripts, posters and other material from private collections and public archives. It will examine the nexus between government, policy makers, health professionals, and Melbourne’s gay community. Highlighting the role of design in the success and failure of the health promotion campaigns that have emerged from these partnerships, Transmissions will also articulate how design helped to brand political activism throughout the epidemic.

The exhibition will focus on key events through primary source material drawn from the Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives, The University of Melbourne Archives, and other public and private collections. This material vividly evokes the history of the epidemic in Melbourne, and a major outcome of the exhibition will be to promote the rich holdings of these collections.

As Melbourne has been the site of significant cultural responses to the epidemic, the exhibition will present a unique opportunity to revisit some of the works shown in major exhibitions about HIV/AIDS held between 1989 and 1994.

Transmissions will present works by Juan Davila, Andrew Foster, Brent Harris, Mathew Jones, Peter Lyssiotis, Lex Middleton, Andi Nellssun, Scott Redford, Ross T Smith, Marcus Bunyan and Marcus O'Donnell.

Although Australia has implemented one the world’s most successful HIV/AIDS prevention campaigns, the exhibition and conference coincide with a twenty-year high in infections rates. Current health promotion campaigns have become increasingly sophisticated to be able to reach a younger generation, and Transmissions will investigate several of these campaigns.

A publication and a comprehensive public program will accompany the exhibition.

This exhibition is co-curated by Michael Graf and Russell Walsh.

Opening hours:

• 12pm-6pm Monday to Friday
• 2pm-5pm Saturday
• The exhibition will be open until 9pm on 23 July as part of the Nite Art Walk

A publication and a comprehensive public program will accompany the exhibition.

This exhibition is co-curated by Michael Graf and Russell Walsh.

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