Apologue Isle

26 July – 6 September 2025

Burnie Regional Art Gallery

The Bridge, 62-64 Wilmot Street, Burnie

Opening: 5.30pm, Friday 25 July

Free event, registration required (register here)

Artist floor talk: 10.30am – 12pm, Saturday 26 July

Free event, registration required (register here)

Exhibition hours: 10am – 4pm, Wednesday – Friday

A project by Andy Hutson in collaboration with Rob Braslin, Robert O’Connor, Merinda Sainty, Theresa Sainty, Kartanya Maynard, Nunami Sculthorpe-Green, Andy Hutson, Ben Yardley, Aaron Everett, Nala Mansell, Kulai Sculthorpe, Erin Hortle, Gabbee Stolp, Mat Ward, Laura Imbruglia, Tom O’Hern, Andrew Hawley, Ethan Rawlins, Kim Jaeger, Sylvie Jaeger, Cheryl Mundy, Rachel Meyers, Jim Everett-puralia meenamatta, Jolie Everett, Sam George-Allen, Genevieve Griffiths, Alex Last, Fiona Hall and Nick Kirmos

Apologue Isle combines storytelling, puppetry and kinetic sculpture, with an increasing sense of urgency to address the fractured relationship between people and nature.

An apologue is a moral fable that lends primacy to non-human entities as drivers of narrative. This project foregrounds nature by giving a tangible voice to the land of Lutruwita/Tasmania. Handmade mechanical puppets in the shape of humans, animals, plants, geological forms and natural forces converse, telling stories of discovery, loss, regeneration and awakening.

For each of the five stories there is a script writer, set builder, musician, and several narrators. Like a Surrealist exquisite corpse, the project has evolved in stages as scripts were developed, sets and puppets designed and built, music composed, and dialogue recorded; each stage building on the one before. The outcome is more than these combined creative endeavours, however: Apologue Isle is also a community of creative people, brought together through the shared ideas and experience of the project.

Dramaturg | Tom Holloway
Photography and videography | Jesse Hunniford
Sound recordist | Ben Travers
Visual identity | David Campbell
Technical programming | Matt Daniels
Website | Kim Jaeger

apologueisle.com

Apologue Isle is a Contemporary Art Tasmania touring exhibition conceived and produced by Andy Hutson. CAT is assisted by the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts funding and advisory body, and is support by Arts Tasmania.

This project was supported by Creative Australia, Arts Tasmania, City of Hobart, Clarence City Council, RANT Arts, Regional Arts Australia.