Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance is launching a new art and photography exhibition, as well as a podcast series, titled 'Lust Love Loss' this Valentine's Day.
Lust Love Loss explores identity and the universal experiences of sex and relationships within the context of commemoration, service and sacrifice. It’s being launched with an accompanying podcast series this Valentine’s Day, produced by award-winning broadcaster Megan Spencer.
The first of three exhibitions in the Shrine’s ‘Identity’ series, Lust Love Loss: Australian stories of wartime relationships displays artworks, photographs, memorabilia and objects that offer a unique insight into themes of separation, grief, exploitation, sexual freedom and oppression and sexual identity.
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Given the unique aura the Shrine of Remembrance has, it will likely give a special resonance to any Valentine’s Day, for those searching for a slightly deeper and more meaningful activity.
The three-part podcast is an intimate accompaniment to the exhibition, featuring interviews with couples on sustaining love and relationships during wartime, the realities of separation and keeping the spark alive.
Exhibition curator, Neil Sharkey, says: “Discussions about military history so often deal with geopolitics, troop movements, ‘big men’, heroics and tragedies that we often forget about the frailties and emotions of the ordinary people who get caught up in these tumultuous events. I hope this exhibition sparks the discussions about primal emotions that have influenced the lives of Australians during wartime as profoundly as their dark counterparts, violence and hate.”
The exhibition is set to follow the launch of Peter Rees and Sue Langford’s A Week in September (Harper Collins), a true story of love, resilience and survival discovered through a precious cache of WWII letters which will be celebrated at an ‘in conversation’ event at the Shrine on 14 February 2022.
Lust Love Loss is open now until 1 November 2022 at the Shrine of Remembrance. For more information visit the website here.
