ADELAIDE.- Ben Quilty couldn’t quite believe it when the Art Gallery of South Australia acquired his most recent exhibition in its entirety. Featuring 16 luscious oil paintings and a large metal sculpture Quilty’s Inhabit is a landmark body of work that continues the artist’s exploration of self and identity.

Quilty flew into Adelaide last week for just four hours – during his visit he covered the pristine Gallery walls with aerosol paint, transforming the gallery space into a total work of art.

“This work will certainly challenge our audiences’ ideas about how artists work – for contemporary artists like Ben Quilty nothing is off limits” said Gallery Director Nick Mitzevich.

Charged by what Germaine Greer recently referred to as the “scars on his psyche”, Quilty’s work continues to strike a chord with his audiences. In an attempt to expel his own demons, Inhabit manages to capture the sentiment of a nation.

Quilty is at the top of his game and his work is highly coveted, his galleries have waiting lists for his work and he has been selected to represent his Sydney gallery at this year’s Hong Kong Art Fair. Inhabit is the first work by Quilty to enter the Gallery’s collection. It was acquired for the Gallery by the Contemporary Collectors to mark the Gallery’s 130th birthday.

Inhabit is on display in gallery 11 from Saturday 19 March until mid June.