The World Turns

The World Turns is an outdoor sculpture by Michael Parekowhai, positioned on the lawn between the Gallery of Modern Art, the State Library of Queensland and the mangroves along the Brisbane River. It is a worthwhile stop when exploring Brisbane’s Cultural Precinct, particularly for visitors who enjoy public art that rewards both a quick look and closer consideration.

The work brings together three bronze elements: a five-metre elephant bookend lying on its side, a kuril — the local native water rat — and a solitary chair at the edge of the lawn. The elephant’s unusual position gives the sculpture its immediate visual impact, while the much smaller kuril can be easy to overlook. The chair marks a place for the viewer within the scene, encouraging people to pause and consider the relationship between the figures rather than treating the sculpture as a single monumental object.

Parekowhai is known for combining popular culture, art, literature and history with wry humour. Here, the elephant’s bookend form references the nearby library, while its overturned posture suggests a world unsettled or turned on its axis. The kuril, associated with the dreaming of local Aboriginal people, brings a local cultural presence to the work. The contrast between the elephant’s apparent weight and the kuril’s calm grooming creates much of the sculpture’s tension, with the empty chair adding another perspective: that of the person observing it.

The setting is an important part of the experience. The bronze forms sit against open lawn, the river and the Brisbane skyline, while the surrounding Cultural Precinct places the work among galleries, the State Library and other public sculptures. It is included in QAGOMA’s broader sculpture walk, which can be explored at your own pace. The work suits solo visitors who want time to think, as well as couples, families and small groups looking for an art stop outdoors. Its scale and recognisable animal forms also make it an approachable introduction to contemporary sculpture, while the layered references offer more for visitors who want to discuss the work’s history, symbolism and place.

The World Turns was commissioned in 2011 to mark GOMA’s fifth anniversary and the twentieth anniversary of the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art. Installed in 2012, it remains a distinctive public artwork in South Brisbane and a strong reason to look beyond the gallery interiors when visiting the precinct.