Jill Orr, Lady in the Swamp Making Waves, 2025. Courtesy the gallery.

Jill Orr’s latest body of work, Same Place Different Time, explores the subtle yet powerful transformations that occur in a place over time. While the location remains constant, the passage of time leaves its mark—reflecting the persistence of colonial history, which lingers like a cultural palimpsest, with the ghosts of the past and present interwoven in Orr’s evocative imagery.

These works are a series of performative gestures by Orr, captured on camera at various moments, yet always as light emerges. The setting is a billabong in the Yarra River’s reaches, the Birrarung, within the Banyule Flats on Wurundjeri Country. This site, rich in both natural and colonial significance, serves as the backdrop for a dialogue between past and present.

In collaboration with photographer Christina Simons and printer Brian Gilkes of Pharos Editions, Same Place Different Time continues Orr’s ongoing investigation into the colonial legacy imprinted on the Australian landscape. This series is a profound reflection on the intersection of performance art and environmental history, marking a significant moment in the practice of one of Australia’s foremost performance artists.

Opening Event: Saturday 31 May, 2 – 4pm