NGV Reading Room

As a celebration and survey of the creative state of the city, the galleries of NGV were emptied out and replaced with the works of over 400 Melbourne artists and designers for the epic exhibition Melbourne Now. Sibling Architecture was commissioned by NGV’s Head of Publications, Megan Patty, to create a reading room, which collected a rich dialogue of Melbourne’s contemporary art and design publications.

A tribune is created for the printed matter on a bridge between two galleries at NGV Australia. Resting on the lime-washed timber treads, one can stretch out and flip through a magazine, join in on a reading circle, listen to a talk, or look towards Birrarung (Yarra River). Reflective walls bookend the tribune so that the sole reader can see themselves as part of something larger whether by sharing a moment on social media, meeting the gaze of another gallery patron, or adjusting their hair. This activity is framed by the text ‘Are you reading me?’ that hovers above the grandstand. It references the television show Ru Paul’s Drag Race announcing from afar that the library is open, and acknowledging that reading can be viewed as a performative act when situated in a shared space.