Exhibition review: Danie Mellor: marru I the unseen visible, Queensland Art Gallery

In Danie Mellor’s new exhibition, marru I the unseen visible, the Dyirbal word ‘marru’ translates in the language of his matrilineal ancestors as ‘becoming visible’.  Both this translation and the title of the exhibition ‘unseen visible’ aptly describe the essence of his evocative recomposed works that explore the shared history of his ancestry alongside his Far North Queensland connection to Country. Within his specific art practice and through the lens of his Ngadjon-jii, Mamu and Anglo-Celtic heritage, Mellor is at pains to depict the wide social and environmental impact that colonial history has had on First Nations people, culture and Country. 

This small, beautifully crafted exhibition is predominantly based on utilising both historical and contemporary source material and photographic imagery. By reimagining pictorial images through the multidiscipline of painting, photography, video projection and film, Mellor delivers the visualisation of both the ‘unseen’ and the ‘becoming’ of his work. This exhibition packs a well-considered and thoughtful punch.    

As one enters, the opening panel based on memory and remembrance considers the artist’s ancestors. The tondos in Wall of Living (2025) are paintings modelled from scans of his skull, serving as a memento of future mortality and our place in history. Chilling and thought-provoking, this panel is set against a mirrored wall to reflect the skull imagery. It creates a sobering tone for the photographic imagery and paintings that follow and that make up the majority of the exhibition. 

Archival photographs play a huge role in Mellor’s life and career, represented here by two large collages of archival material – The Remembering (of self and shadow) (2025) and The Remembering (forever in history) (2024). Sometimes including his own imagery, Mellor chooses relevant archival photographs and uses brushed-on paint to resemble photo-reproductions. Mostly using synthetic polymer paint on board or linen, often with gesso and iridescent wash to obtain the desired effect, he creates his unique photo-like imagery. Most often created in sepia or shades of black and white, the reimagined works recall a bygone age to great effect.  

Of several photo reproductions, Shadowland (water talking story place) (2023) and On the Edge of Darkness (the sun also sets) (2020), stand out with their haunting almost magical quality that draws the viewer in. They do not necessarily present a rosy pre-colonial world view – more a realistic image of daily Indigenous life. Rainbows appear in some canvases, a reminder of Yamani, the rainbow serpent and ancestral being that helped shape the landscape. The splash of colour also adds an eerie quality to these works. 

Additionally, some of the works are strongly influenced by colonial settlement and are disquieting in representing the impact of white settlers on local life and the environment. The Camp at Midday (Jimmy’s got a gun) (2023) and The Invitation (2023) are fine examples of these works. 

The most impressive piece in the exhibition is a 24-minute two-channel video projection that includes historical imagery and overlaid photos and projections. Dark Star Waterfall (2025) was created to show the power of the natural world via the nonstop flowing waterfalls of Far North Queensland. The water imagery, with its mirrored effects and powerful soundscape, is set amid the vastness of a forested landscape, much of it clearly wild and uninhabitable. Mellor calls this a ‘landspace’ – terminology that does not denote ownership in the same way that ‘landscape’ might. 

This filmic work is also not without reference to colonial deforestation, the destruction of animal habitat and past images of Indigenous life. The representation of the bright green forest foliage is here most often depicted in hues of brilliant crimson and red. It provides a surreal and disturbing quality that perhaps foreshadows the forest’s demise.  

Read: Exhibition review: Karla Dickens, Rise and Fall, Wollongong Art Gallery

Shot using infrared and visible light cameras, Mellor states that his work “reveals the invisible and shows what is not seen”.  A beautifully realised, mesmerising and haunting video/film, this is very much a highlight of the exhibition.  

Danie Mellor: marru I the unseen visible is showing at the Queensland Art Gallery, Southbank, Brisbane until 3 August 2025. Entry is free.