Skip navigation

Main menu

  • What's on
  • Art & Artists
    • The Collection
      Artists
      Artworks
      Art by theme
      Media
      Videos
      Podcasts
      Short articles
      Learning
      Schools
      Art Terms
      Tate Research
      Art Making
      Create like an artist
      Kids art activities
      Tate Draw game
  • Visit
  • Shop
Become a Member
  • DISCOVER ART
  • ARTISTS A-Z
  • ARTWORK SEARCH
  • ART BY THEME
  • VIDEOS
  • ART TERMS
  • SCHOOLS
  • TATE KIDS
  • RESEARCH
  • Tate Britain
    Tate Britain Free admission
  • Tate Modern
    Tate Modern Free admission
  • Tate Liverpool + RIBA North
    Tate Liverpool + RIBA North Free admission
  • Tate St Ives
    Tate St Ives Ticket or membership card required
  • FAMILIES
  • ACCESSIBILITY
  • SCHOOLS
  • PRIVATE TOURS
Tate Logo
Become a Member
Now booking Tate Modern Talk

Menzies Lecture 2025 The Life of Emily Kam Kngwarray

22 October 2025 at 18.30–20.00
Book tickets Become a Member
Emily Kam Kngwarray kneeling on blankets, with sand and grass behind her, and a cup of tea in front of her.

Emily Kam Kngwarray near Mparntwe / Alice Springs after the first exhibition of Utopia batiks, 1980. Photo: Toly Sawenko

Join Kelli Cole and Hetti Perkins, Australian First Nations Curators, for this year's Menzies Annual Lecture hosted at Tate Modern

Kelli Cole and Hetti Perkins have curated significant solo exhibitions of Emily Kam Kngwarray, Anmatyerr people (c.1914–1996).

Kngwarray was a pivotal figure in the artistic revolution that redefined contemporary Aboriginal art with her unique style and powerful creative vision, earning her worldwide attention. This talk explores the life of one of the most significant painters to emerge in the late 20th century.

In partnership with and supported by the Menzies Australia Institute, King's College London.

This event has been provided by Tate Gallery on behalf of Tate Enterprises Ltd.

Hetti Perkins

Curator, writer and presenter Hetti Perkins is a member of the Arrernte and Kalkadoon Aboriginal communities. Hetti is the curator of ‘Desert Mob’ presented annually by Desart, the peak advocacy body for Central Australian art centres. Hetti has worked with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander visual art for over thirty years and was Senior Curator (at large), National Gallery of Australia where she curated Ceremony: the 4th National Indigenous Art Triennial (March – July 2022). Hetti also co-curated (with Kelli Cole) a major retrospective exhibition of the work of Emily Kam Kngwarray for the National Gallery in 2023-24. In 2018 she was awarded an Australia Council for the Arts Fellowship. In 2019, Hetti was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of New South Wales.

Kelli Cole

Kelli Cole, a Warumungu and Luritja woman from Central Australia, is the Director of Curatorial & Engagement for the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Gallery of Australia project in Alice Springs. She is the lead curator for the Tate Modern exhibition Emily Kam Kngwarray (July 2025 – January 2026), building upon the 2023 National Gallery of Australia exhibition she co-curated with Hetti Perkins. Previously, she held the position of Curator of Special Projects in the First Nations portfolio at the National Gallery of Australia. Cole has contributed to numerous publications, both nationally and internationally, on various aspects of First Nations art and also worked closely with Hetti Perkins as part of the curatorial team for the 4th National Indigenous Art Triennial: Ceremony (2022). 

The Starr Cinema has step-free access and space for wheelchair users.

The Starr Cinema is on Level 1 of the Natalie Bell Building.

There are lifts to every floor of the Blavatnik and Natalie Bell buildings. Alternatively you can take the stairs.

  • Fully accessible toilets are located on every floor on the concourses.
  • A quiet room is available to use in the Natalie Bell Building on Level 4.
  • Ear defenders can be borrowed from the Ticket desks.

To help plan your visit to Tate Modern, have a look at our visual story. It includes photographs and information about what you can expect from a visit to the gallery.

Download Tate Modern map PDF

For more information before your visit:

  • Email hello@tate.org.uk
  • Call +44 (0)20 7887 8888 (daily 10.00–17.00)

Check all Tate Modern accessibility information

Tate Modern

Starr Cinema

Please use the Corner Bar entrance

Bankside
London SE1 9TG
Plan your visit

Date & Time

22 October 2025 at 18.30–20.00

Pricing

£15 / £13 for Members

£13 Concessions / £5 Universal or Pension credit recipients

£5 for Tate Collective. 16–25? Sign up and log in to book

Book tickets Become a Member

In partnership with

Menzies Australia Institute, King's College London

Related events

Left Right
  • Exhibition

    Emily Kam Kngwarray

    A major exhibition celebrating the monumental art of Emily Kam Kngwarray

    Tate Modern
    Until 11 Jan 2026
  • Talk PAST EVENT

    Painting Country: The Vision of Emily Kam Kngwarray

    Join an evening celebrating the life and work of artist Emily Kam Kngwarray (c 1914-1996)

    Tate Modern
    9 Jul 2025
  • Private view

    Members Private View: Emily Kam Kngwarray

    Visit the exhibition in these special times reserved just for you

    Tate Modern
    9 Jul 2025, 16 Jul 2025, 21 Aug 2025
Artwork
Close

Join in

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
Sign up to emails

Sign up to emails

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Tate’s privacy policy

About

  • About us
  • Our collection
  • Terms and copyright
  • Governance
  • Picture library
  • ARTIST ROOMS
  • Tate Kids

Support

  • Tate Collective
  • Members
  • Patrons
  • Donate
  • Corporate
  • My account
  • Press
  • Jobs
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Cookies
  • Contact
© The Board of Trustees of the Tate Gallery, 2025
All rights reserved