Don’t miss the Matildas-themed Summer Family Space at NPG, where people of all ages are invited to move and make. Photos: Michelle Kroll.
This summer, the National Portrait Gallery is giving kids and families a chance to score big on the entertainment front in interactive spaces where play meets inspiration, all under the gaze of some of Australia’s most legendary athletes: the Matildas.
Inspired by a major new moving image portrait of the CommBank Matildas FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ Squad, the gallery has created three dynamic intergenerational activation zones where visitors of all ages are invited to “make and move“.
Gallery Director, Curatorial and Collection, Isobel Parker Philip, said the space brought the energy, skill and stories of the Matildas off the pitch and into a hands-on experience for visitors of all ages.
“It will be an opportunity for people who know and love football and the Matildas to deeply engage with these incredible athletes in many different ways, from the incredible portrait itself to a whole host of activities,” she said.
Drop-in activities include reflex testing (the kind athletes undertake), agility and movement challenges, foosball tables, a football pitch and seated soccer-related activities.
For those looking to unleash creativity, there will be the chance to make your own football cards of your favourite players, and a beaded bracelet station.
The gallery will also host several special events in tandem, including the Little Kickers soccer camp.
“Depending on your energy levels, anyone and everyone can be involved and get into the spirit of celebrating the Matildas,” Isobel said.
Created by acclaimed Sydney-based artist Angela Tiatia, the artwork takes the form of a 23-minute video portrait of all 23 players from the squad.
“It’s a video portrait because the Matildas could not be captured in stillness,” National Portrait Gallery director Bree Pickering said.
The first-ever portrait commission of a whole team to enter the national collection, and the gallery’s most ambitious commission yet, the moving image portrait was filmed across three continents, five cities and seven shoots.
The portrait captures the vulnerability, strength and concentration of preparing for a game, as well as the pride of representing their country. Moments of skill, beauty and individuality are interspersed with smiles and laughter between teammates, projected on a monumental 4.2 x 7.6 m screen.
“It depicts them in action, but also in these intimate moments, their pre-game rituals and scenes of camaraderie. You see Raso tying her ribbon, Steph and Sam putting on the captain’s armband and Courtney Nevin’s candid smile. It gives audiences a chance to see the Matildas as they’ve never seen them before.
“We’re so thrilled to be able to celebrate this monumental artwork in an immersive cinematic space, where the Matildas are quite literally larger than life. The contemplative, reflective space incites audiences to sit with the work, watch their heroes on the big screen, then go outside and translate that inspiration in the summer family spaces.”
In 2023, the CommBank Matildas made history. Their performance at the FIFA Women’s World Cup transformed how Australians engage with women’s sport and galvanised audiences across the country.
The nation held its breath as Cortnee Vine stepped up to take her penalty against France in the quarter-final, ending the longest penalty shootout at World Cup level. More than 11 million Australians tuned in to watch the team’s semi-final against England, the most-watched broadcast in Australian television history.
Bree said the work had to take the scale and scope it did.
“Our ambition had to match the Matildas’ achievements,” she said. “Here at the Portrait Gallery, we knew this was a cultural moment that needed to be immortalised and the journey to this incredible portrait began,” she said.
For more information, visit the National Portrait Gallery.
