Tourmaline: Transcendent

Australian Centre for Contemporary Art
Main exhibition gallery
Free

Friday 12th December 2025 - Sunday 15th March 2026

Transcendent is the first Australian solo exhibition of work by acclaimed American artist, filmmaker and writer, Tourmaline. Developed in close consultation with the artist, Transcendent is an elegant and powerful exhibition that speaks to urgent contemporary issues. Tourmaline has exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and MoMA in New York, Tate, London and more, attracting an enthusiastic following for her work at the intersection of activism and fine art. This starting point powerfully informs her resonant research into celebrated historical figures, to create work that strives to make sense of broader issues facing her communities.

Transcendent features new large-scale photographs and the global debut of Tourmaline's newest video work, specially commissioned by ACCA. The video work extends her ongoing research into queer histories, including her recently published biography on the life and legacy of revolutionary LGBTIQA+ activist Marsha P. Johnson. Currently on an international tour for Marsha: The Joy and Defiance of Marsha P. Johnson, Tourmaline is sharing a story that feels deeply pertinent to the times. Figures like Johnson have become powerful symbols of the need for queer solidarity with the trans community. Johnson rose to prominence for her role in the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City - an event often linked to the queer community's mourning of Judy Garland and their resistance to police raids. Although the story that Johnson 'threw the first brick' is disputed, it has become emblematic of the beginning of American queer liberation. With trans rights increasingly under threat globally, this timely exhibition invites reflection on those legacies, while challenging audiences to engage with the political present.

Transcendent will also include the first Australian presentation of Tourmaline's iconic film Pollinator (2022). This moving single-channel video incorporates archival footage from Marsha P. Johnson's funeral procession and community celebration. Transcendent promises to break your heart and put it back together with the strength and tenderness for which Tourmaline is renowned.

Curated by: Sophie Prince

ACCA warmly thanks the Rob Gould Foundation for their support of a major new commission exploring the legacy of Marsha P. Johnson, premiering in this exhibition.

About the artist:
Tourmaline (b. 1983, Roxbury, MA) lives and works in Miami, Florida. Recent solo and group exhibitions include MASP, São Paulo; MUDAM, Luxembourg; Chapter NY, New York; the 2024 Whitney Biennial, New York; and the 59th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, Venice.

She has also featured in group exhibitions at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebaek; South London Gallery, London; MASS MoCA, North Adams; Tate Modern, London; the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; LACMA, Los Angeles; MoMA, New York; the Athens Biennale; the Brooklyn Museum; The Bronx Museum of the Arts; MoMA PS1; the High Line; The Kitchen, New York; BFI Flare, London; Portland Art Museum; Aspen Art Museum; BAM Cinematek, Brooklyn; The New Museum; MOCA, Los Angeles; the Studio Museum in Harlem; and the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago.






 Australian Centre for Contemporary Art View Venue
 111 Sturt St Southbank Victoria 3006 Map



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