For lovers of street art, there is an unmissable pop up exhibition called ‘The Outsiders’, on now in Melbourne’s CBD.

It seems counter intuitive to have street art in a gallery but luckily for those of us that appreciate this art form and these artists who typically defy the art establishment, we can see these pieces all at the one time and place. The exhibition of more than 100 works, is part of the Sandrew collection, the private collection of Sandra Powell and Andrew King, who are the owners of the largest collection of street art in Australia.

Chiefly amongst the pieces are a number of well-known Banksy artworks including a new work called ‘Firewall’, featuring bricks and mortar in place of a computer screen, which is on show for the first time in Australia.

Amongst other artists works on display are pieces by some of the biggest names in the street art scene, from Australia and around the world. These include, Adnate, Kaff-eine, Fintan Magee and an immersive installation by Rone.

Rone is known for his large scale, walk through installations that use a mix of art, set design qualities, and music to take visitors through what feels like abandoned spaces with haunting scenes of times gone by. This exhibition is called workroom and recreates a garment workroom from the 1940s. It’s a tribute to the industry and the women who were employed during and after World War 2, in Melbourne’s garment district, and resembles a typical workroom that has been frozen in time.

A few other of my favourites from the exhibition include paintings by Adnate who is a master of capturing the soul of his portrait subjects. On display are portraits of former AFL player Adam Goodes and his Archibald Prize entry from 2023 of Daniel Johns, frontman of the 1990s group, Silverchair.

Amongst the Banksy pieces are some of his popular street ‘rat’ series and other pieces of his always controversial, political and socially charged art. The Fr-Agile mouse piece is a political statement on the resilience of Ukraine civilians and money raised from sale of prints went to an organisation supporting Ukraine.

Another Banksy on show is Flower Thrower, a politically motivated image where a bandana masked man seemingly about to throw a missile, is instead about to launch a bouquet of flowers, symbolising an appeal to replace violence with peace. Similarly the artwork of two armed soldiers painting a graffiti peace sign has become a universal symbol of antiwar sentiment.

The exhibition also features a Banksy quote that gives a great insight into his thinking, ‘Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable’.

The Outsiders is a free exhibition, only on until the 25^th of May and you’ll find it at 167 Flinders Lane, fittingly on the corner of Hosier Lane, where you can continue your look at street art and graffiti in its natural habitat, a Melbourne laneway.

Enjoy being comfortable or disturbed!

Glenys