{"id":474211,"date":"2026-02-12T03:21:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T03:21:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/474211\/"},"modified":"2026-02-12T03:21:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T03:21:12","slug":"australias-rebels-of-romance-new-exhibition-explores-our-search-for-connection-in-the-past-present-and-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/474211\/","title":{"rendered":"Australia’s rebels of romance: new exhibition explores our search for connection in the past, present and future"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"State<\/a>State Library Victoria\u2019s magnetic new exhibition Rebel Heart: Love letters and other declarations<\/a> reveals the unsung rebels of romance throughout Australian history.<\/p>\n

Rebel Heart charts romantic love\u2019s passion and pain through the Library\u2019s archive of soul-baring letters, intimate diaries and rare manuscripts, amplified by powerful new music commissions by Australian artists Angie McMahon, Mindy Meng Wang, Mo\u2019Ju and Amos Roach.<\/p>\n

This stirring exhibition spans centuries of connection and courage to illuminate the brave hearts who dared to love unapologetically \u2013 from same-sex couples in the Victorian era and a mid-century marriage at odds with the White Australia policy, to devotion outside marriage, across borders and online.<\/p>\n

Dive into modern expressions of the rebel heart, exploring our search for connection now and into the future through mixtapes, DMs, AI relationships and fandoms \u2013 from zines and fanfiction to Taylor Swift friendship bracelets from the Eras Tour, Melbourne 2024.<\/p>\n

\"Victorian-era<\/a>Highlights of Rebel Heart: Love letters and other declarations include:\u00a0<\/p>\n

The \u2018gentlewoman farmers\u2019 Anne Drysdale and Caroline Newcomb, who lived together on their farm in the 1840s. Anne\u2019s personal diaries are the inspiration for Angie McMahon\u2019s music commission.
\nAileen McColl, who wrote letters to Minister for Immigration Harold Holt seeking permission for her Filipino husband, Agapito Castillo, to return home to his family in Melbourne under the White Australia Policy. Wiradyuri-Filipinx artist Mo\u2019Ju responds to this expression of the rebel heart in their new commission.
\nAustralian music icons Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter, members of the Stolen Generations who met as teenagers sleeping rough and went on to become ARIA award-winners and industry stalwarts. A new piece of music by their son Amos Roach responds to the legacy of his parents\u2019 love.
\nMan and XiangYa, whose unrequited love is distilled in a heartbreaking letter found tucked behind a painting on display in the Library in 2009 and is brought to new life in a music commission by Chinese-Australian artist Mindy Meng Wang.
\nBushrangers Captain Moonlight and James Nesbitt, who met in Pentridge Prison and remained together until Nesbitt died in Moonlight\u2019s arms in a shoot-out.<\/p>\n

\"Mixtapes<\/a>Rebel Heart is a daring, defiant celebration of love\u2019s power to connect us, challenge us and remind us that the heart wants what it wants \u2013 no matter the century.<\/p>\n

\u201cRebel Heart dives deep into the collection to uncover heartfelt stories of love and connection, with this free, must-see exhibition,\u201d said Minister for Creative Industries Colin Brooks.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor 170 years, State Library Victoria has been collecting some of the most ephemeral and personal records \u2013 letters, postcards, diaries and more \u2013 to preserve these expressions of the heart for future generations. This captivating exhibition is not to be missed,\u201d said State Library Victoria Acting CEO John Wicks.<\/p>\n

Celebrate Valentine\u2019s Day (14 February) with the Library\u2019s infatuating Rebel Heart programs and events, from Love Letters Live<\/a> \u2013 candid and comedic letter readings by beloved comics with host Nina Oyama \u2013 to Love and Art<\/a>, a series of intimate evenings with local creatives exploring how love shapes their artistic practice, kicking off with The Huxleys (5 March).<\/p>\n

Rebel Heart: Love letters and other declarations
Keith Murdoch Gallery \u2013 State Library Victoria, Swanston Street, Melbourne
Exhibition continues to 27 January 2027
Free entry<\/p>\n

For more information, visit: www.slv.vic.gov.au<\/a> for details.<\/p>\n

Images: Rebel Heart celebrates true stories of love that defied the status quo \u2013 photo by Eugene Hyland (courtesy of State Library Victoria) | Victorian-era Valentine\u2019s cards \u2013 photo by Eugene Hyland (courtesy of State Library Victoria) | Mixtapes were a labour of love in the 1970s, \u201980s and \u201990s \u2013 photo by Eugene Hyland (courtesy of State Library Victoria)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"State Library Victoria\u2019s magnetic new exhibition Rebel Heart: Love letters and other declarations reveals the unsung rebels of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":474212,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,4100,163850,40037,4094,163851,4101,647,163849,4093,163853,44,4092,4099,4090,4105,163852,4089,4104],"class_list":{"0":"post-474211","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-australia","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-belvoir","11":"tag-book-of-mormom","12":"tag-destination-nsw","13":"tag-fortyfivedownstairs","14":"tag-kooza","15":"tag-la-boite-theatre","16":"tag-melbourne","17":"tag-meow-meow","18":"tag-midsumma","19":"tag-muck-rack","20":"tag-news","21":"tag-ngv","22":"tag-opera-australia","23":"tag-publication-media","24":"tag-rocky-horror","25":"tag-the-lion-king","26":"tag-theatre","27":"tag-todd-mckenney"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474211","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=474211"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474211\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/474212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=474211"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=474211"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=474211"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}