Monaco Hosts Major Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Exhibition About Oceans and Water

Monaco's Oceanographic Museum will host a major exhibition on the theme of oceans and water showcasing Australian aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art works. The exhibition called “Taba Naba”* will take over the entire museum from 24th March until 30th September 2016.

Robert Calcagno, CEO of the Oceanographic Institute said “The Taba Naba Exhibition claims an ambitious positioning and develops a strong message to the public. Here we are presenting the art of peoples who have remained in contact and in dialogue with nature, combining ancient tradition and modernity. These peoples live and breathe the culture of the ocean in a healthy and balanced inter-relationship that can and should inspire us.”

The Oceanographic Museum of Museum

The Oceanographic Museum's mission is to raise awareness of the richness and fragility of the oceans and to promote their sustainable management and rational and effective protection, a vocation initiated by its founder, Prince Albert I of Monaco. It also plays a key role in the exhibition of contemporary art. Major artists have been invited to submit works on the theme of the protection of the oceans. Damien Hirst, Huang Yong Ping, Mark Dion and Marc Quinn have all exhibited masterworks on its walls.

Built against the mythical Monegasque rock, the museum has been watching over the oceans for more than a century. Created by Prince Albert I, it was designed from the outset as a Palace fully dedicated to Art and Science. From the ornamentation of the facade to the interior decor, everything in the museum's architecture evokes the marine world. Since its inauguration in 1910, this 6,500 m2 Temple of the Sea has been open to the public. Standing eighty-five meters above the water at its highest point, it offers a stunning environment as a site for the discovery of more than 6,000 specimens and a place of cultural exchange.

*Taba Naba is a traditional indigenous children's song from the Torres Strait Islands. It is accompanied by a sitting dance that singers perform with gestures throughout the song. The original version of the song is in the Meriam language. It evokes the pleasures of fishing on the reefs.

The Oceanographic Museum is open everyday (except the weekend of the F1 Grand Prix ad 25 December) For more details about this and other exhibitions please visit the museum website: www.oceano.mc/en/exhibitions