Amplifying guitar history

AN Australian exclusive exhibition coming to the Art Gallery of Ballarat (AGB) later this year will be music to the ears of guitar lovers.

Medieval to Metal: The Art & Evolution of the Guitar is set to celebrate the instrument, displaying guitar-centric paintings, drawings, designs, photographs and objects.

But 40 loaned guitars from the National Guitar Museum in the United States are set to be the stars of the show.

“The Art Gallery of Ballarat is the only venue this exhibition will be visiting in Australia, and we are proud to call Ballarat the home for these incredible works for almost five months over spring and summer,” National Guitar Museum executive director HP Newquist said.

“The guitar has long been the world’s most popular instrument – it outsells all other instruments combined – and visitors to Medieval to Metal will get to experience the entire history of the guitar all in one place.

“With 40 different instruments that show how the guitar has evolved in various forms around the planet, this exhibition explores the guitar’s role at the centre of both pop culture and art, and why it became the definitive musical icon of the past hundred years.”

AGB director Louise Tegart said the exhibition will include pieces from the classical era to contemporary times, presenting a visual history lesson on the guitar and its evolution.

“Medieval to Metal celebrates the guitar in every way.

“Through our nostalgic obsessions with bands, musicians and performing artists to our love of creating and sharing music through interesting sounds and rockin’ riffs, we are proud to present this exhibition.

“The guitar has been making headlines for centuries. Ceremonies began when the oud was strummed and the world stopped when Dylan went electric.

“This exhibition celebrates the design of the guitar and artistic responses to it over time.

“Medieval to Metal invites the fan, the player, the music maker into the art and design of the most loved instrument on this planet.”

Highlights of the show will include works by rock photographer Neil Zlozower alongside photographic and Australian music documenter Tony Mott.

Public programs relating to the exhibition, including partnerships with Ballarat businesses, will be announced in July.

Medieval to Metal: The Art & Evolution of the Guitar will open on October 12 and run until February 2, 2025.