Opens: Thursday, 24 July from 6 - 8pm
On show: 24 July - 9 August

Begun in the shadow of the 2024 US elections, Empire Fall brings together 27 richly layered mixed media works, exploring the cyclical rise and ruin of global empires both past and present. Each work is a meditation on the power structures that shape our world, tracing lines from the ancient empires of expansion, alliance and conquest, through to today’s fractured democracies.

From discovery and dispossession, through to new empires in the age of information, each work tells a story of inevitable decay and collapse: of hubris followed by humiliation, and Faustian pacts stamped and signed by those who believed their empire would never fall.

Known for his cinematic visual language and deft use of salvaged materials, Powditch constructs complex, narrative-rich compositions that echo propaganda, movie posters, and political commentary in equal measure. These new works are as much historical archaeology as they are urgent contemporary warning.

With a career spanning nearly three decades, James Powditch has held 22 solo exhibitions and is a regular finalist in Australia's most prestigious art prizes. He has been selected nine times for the Archibald Prize and twelve times for the Wynne Prize, with recent portraits of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Laura Tingle, and Kerry O’Brien drawing national acclaim.