Donation of late artist’s work connects families

THE Art Gallery of Ballarat has received a donation of work by late Aboriginal artist Josh Muir.

Created in 2015 and 2016, the piece titled Many places to get help, was donated to the gallery collection by the estate of the late Joel Coatsworth, after he acquired it in unusual circumstances.

The artwork was originally commissioned by Cafs as part of an anti-gambling campaign, however the welfare agency never went through with the purchase.

Mr Coatsworth, who was working for Cafs at the time then purchased the piece directly from Muir.

A Yorta Yorta and Gunditjmara man, Muir died in 2020. Mr Coatsworth was killed in a car crash the following year.

“Josh Muir was a very exciting young artist whose work we are proud to have in the collection,” said Humphrey Clegg, assistant director of engagement at the Art Gallery of Ballarat.

“He worked in a vibrant, street-art style, and his works are very distinctive, very bold and contemporary.

“The other works of his which we hold in our collection explore aspects of his identity as a young Indigenous man, but in this work, he has addressed a problem which affects many people in our community and which he felt a strong connection to.

“We are very grateful to Joel Coatsworth’s mother Faye Hinton and the Coatsworth family for donating it to the collection.”

Created using the stories of people affected by gambling addiction and Muir’s own experience, Many places to get help tells the story of single person, the impacts gambling has, and how the subject overcame it.

“I slipped down that crevice and I used to go there every now and then to just chill out, to escape, to the point where I used to drive down to Melbourne just to go to the casino,” Muir said in 2016.

“Afterwards you realise what you’ve done and it’s almost like you feel guilty because you couldn’t control that responsibility.

“People take that risk and the majority of the time it doesn’t pay off and they’re left in the lurch and having to face hard times because of it.

“When it gets out of control, it’s not a good thing and it’s important to get the message across because it’s growing, its increasing, especially with younger people too.

“With the art, I want to provide inspiration and hope, it’s do-able if you seek support.”

The work will form part of a wider retrospective of Muir’s art, collated by Koorie Heritage Trust, set to tour next year.