NGV Friday Nights: Picasso, NGAIIRE and blood-orange crème caramel combine
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01.06.2022

NGV Friday Nights: Picasso, NGAIIRE and blood-orange crème caramel combine

NGV
Words by Niam Hegarty

NGV Friday Nights returns with a world-first exhibition displaying Pablo Picasso and his contemporaries in ‘The Picasso Century’, alongside a selection of the most exciting musical acts in Australia.

NGV Friday Nights is back highlighting world-class live music and the world premiere of the 2022 Melbourne Winter Masterpieces® exhibition The Picasso Century.  For those heading down on Friday nights from June 10, it’s a unique chance to experience live music in the NGV’s Great Hall, dine at the Bar Lourinhã pop-up, experience a wide range of drinking options at various pop-up bars, and enjoy after-hours access to a unique, world-first exhibition.

The Picasso Century exhibition charts the groundbreaking career of Pablo Picasso in dialogue with the artists, poets, and intellectuals he interacted with throughout the 20th century including Georges Braque, Salvador Dalí, Alberto Giacometti, Françoise Gilot, Valentine Hugo, Marie Laurencin, Dora Maar, André Masson, Henri Matisse, Dorothea Tanning and Gertrude Stein. There are over 80 works by Picasso alongside over 100 works by more than 50 of his contemporaries drawn from premier French collections as well as the NGV.

What you need to know

  • NGV Friday Nights returns for Melbourne Winter Masterpieces® exhibition The Picasso Century
  • The series features major Australian music acts, legendary international artists, and superb Spanish cuisine
  • Info and tickets at the NGV Friday Nights Website here.

Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.

In terms of live music, NGV Friday Night opening nights kicks off on June 10 with performances by NGAIIRE and Kia, and they’ll host live acts every Friday in The Great Hall. 36 live musical acts will perform across the event including Proto Moro, The Seven Ups, Velvet Bloom, Ngaiire, Emma Donovan & The Putbacks, Harvey Sutherland, Snowy Band, Hobsons Bay Coast Guard, Surprise Chef, Horatio Luna and many, many more.

The opening and closing nights alone showcase the wonderful versatility on offer. Opening headliner NGAIIRE is known for her stellar vocal force, boisterous costuming, and big brave pop sounds. Drawing on her experiences growing up in Papua New Guinea, NGAIIRE has a career that crosses genre and art form. Her work has seen her grace the stages of Glastonbury and Splendour in the Grass, as well as national tours alongside Flume, Sufjan Stevens, and Alicia Keys.

Closing night will feature Sweet Whirl and The Dollar Bin Darlings. Melbourne artist Esther Edquist, aka Sweet Whirl, released her debut album How Much Works in 2020, dissecting experiences with wit and depth, and emerging as a powerful voice. The album was heralded by mainstream and specialist media alike. DJs Baby K-os and Aunty Jonny are the Dollar Bin Darlings; larger than life, welcoming, warm, cheeky, generous, accommodating, flirty and hugely energetic.

Along with a world-premiere Picasso exhibition and top-notch live music, NGV are offering a unique food and beverage experience with a Melbourne institution taking over the Garden Restaurant. Bar Lourinhã will transform the space into a pop-up restaurant for a limited time, offering diners a menu designed by executive chef Matt McConnell exclusively for the NGV that celebrates Victorian produce with Mediterranean and Iberian flavours. Unique cocktails are on the menu, while food includes a menu featuring contemporary versions of the regions’ classic dishes, composed of seasonal and locally-sourced ingredients. Every day for lunch (11:30am – 4pm) and on Friday evenings after 6pm, the garden will be filled with the flavours of Jamon croqetas, manzanilla-braised beef cheek and blood orange crème caramel. On Friday nights only, this will be set the sounds of soulful vocals, DJ sets, instrumental jazz-funk and ambient groove aim to transport audiences back to the joie-de-vivre Picasso encountered when he moved to Paris in 1904.

Fine wine will be flowing at the Yering Station Wine Bar, where visitors can enjoy wines from the Yarra Valley and indulge in a unique wine tasting experience with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Shiraz varietals on offer. You can also enjoy a glass of champagne, oysters, and a pre-gig DJ at the Pommery Champagne Bar before you see head into the exhibition. They’ll also be serving a menu of share plates and meals including Jamon and manchego croquetas, spiced beef albondigas (Spanish meatballs), empanadas, churros and Basque-style burnt cheesecake.

Alternatively head to the Garden Terrace Bar and embrace Melbourne at its winter best. Enjoy a mulled or dessert wine, warm up under blankets and heaters, and look up to the city lights glittering among the stars across the Melbourne night sky. We could think of worse ways to spend a Friday night.

NGV Friday Nights Live music program

10 June – NGAIIRE & Kia
17 June – Emma Donovan and the Putbacks & Zjoso
24 June – Horatio Luna & Nauva
1 July – Proto Moro & Millú
8 July – Elle Shimada & Billos + Klomp
15 July – Hobsons Bay Coast Guard & Andras
22 July – Myllo & Loure
29 July – ACOPIA & Vincent Sole
5 August – Polly and the Pockets & Louis McCoy
12 August – The Seven Ups and Afrodisiac
19 August – Solomon Sisay & Afrodisiac
26 August – Snowy Band & Andras
2 September – Velvet Bloom & Kalyani
9 September – Birdsnake & Pjenne
16 September – Surprise Chef & College of Knowledge
23 September – Polito, Vincent Sole and Harvey Sutherland (DJ set)
30 September – Traffik Island’s Shadow Band & Sina
7 October – Sweet Whirl & The Dollar Bin Darlings

NGV Friday Nights will run from 10 June  7 October at NGV International, St Kilda Rd, Melbourne. Further information and tickets are available here.

Made in partnership with NGV.