Hidden artists let art speak
By Amber Wilson, The Mercury, 29 March 2026, pg 9
Anonymity is taking centre stage in a new Hobart exhibition where the artists' identities are hidden and the art must speak for itself.
(Let the) Art Speak at the Long Gallery is a visual art exhibition where the names, background and professional reputation of artists remain obscured from public view.
Run by interdisciplinary arts organisation Second Echo Ensemble, the artworks were selected in a process where a panel couldn't access names or CVs.
The works will remain nameless - right up to the closing event on April 10 when they will be "revealed and celebrated".
"This is about stripping things back," said Maggie Mav Jeffries, lead artist provocateur.
"When you remove identity, you start to see how much weight we place on it, and what happens when the artwork has to speak for itself"
Jeffries said it was a process that questioned systems of hierarchy in the arts. She said the exhibition asked the question - if you couldn't see the artist's name, background or reputation, would the work still hold up?
She said in curating the show anonymously, the panel had to develop a new selection criteria, responding to each artwork as an
individual experience.
The exhibition features artists from across Tasmania and nationally, and will also include panel discussions with art sector leaders along with workshops.
(Let the) Art Speak will open March 26 from 5pm.
For more information, visit www.sac.org.au/events/let-the-art-speak
Page 9 from The Mercury, 29 March 2026. Maggie May Jeffries, lead artist provocateur (centre), with David Montgomery and Annalise Haigh, Second Echo Ensemble artists from the curatorial panel. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones
