On South Bank, just over Victoria Bridge from the CBD, the Cultural Centre is the epicentre of Brisbane’s cultural confluence. It’s a huge compound that includes a concert and theatre venue, an enormous conference and convention centre and a modern concrete edifice containing three museums and the Queensland State Library. Right next to this is yet another art mecca, the Gallery of Modern Art.
A good place to start is the Queensland Museum , which occupies imaginations with all manner of curiosities. Queensland’s history is given a once-over with an interesting collection of exhibits, including a skeleton of the state’s own dinosaur, Muttaburrasaurus, and the Avian Cirrus, the tiny plane in which Queensland’s Bert Hinkler made the first England-to-Australia solo flight in 1928. Upstairs there’s an enlightening, if not distressing, display on Queensland’s endangered species, as well as a reconstruction of the host of mammoth marsupials that roamed these shores more than 100,000 years ago. There are also good temporary exhibits on the likes of bug, beetle and butterfly parades, or dinosaur skeletons from around the globe.
The museum also houses the excellent Sciencentre , with over 100 hands-on, interactive exhibits that delve into life science and technology in fun, thought-provoking ways.
Inside an austere chunk of concrete, the Queensland Art Gallery houses a fine permanent collection, mostly of domestic and European artists. The gallery showcases Australian art from the 1840s through to the 1970s, and the 1st floor is devoted to celebrated Australian artists; you can view works by masters including Sir Sydney Nolan, Arthur Boyd, William Dobell and George Lambert.
The Gallery of Modern Art is housed in an enormous building flooded with natural light, which contrasts wood, concrete and brushed steel in its contemporary design. Exhibition halls showcase Australian art from the 1970s to modern times in a variety of changing exhibitions and media: painting, sculpture and photography sit alongside video, installation and film. You can enjoy the sublime river and city views from various onsite cafes.
