Power to the People - Exhibition: @ The Union Theatre, Wonthaggi

Power to the People

Prints from the Robert Smith Collection

Curated by Simon Gregg

Sunday 15 June to 2 August 2025

Opening celebration Sunday 15 June 2025, 2-4PM

Wonthaggi Union Community Arts Centre

Power to the People traces the tradition of humanist art through two centuries of printmaking. The exhibition threads a narrative through Spanish, French, Mexican and German art, to provide a context to the emergence of Social Realism in Melbourne in the 1930s. Featuring works by many of the key artists from the period, including Goya, Daumier, Kollwitz and Counihan, Power to the People shows how the human spirit has burned brightest in times of the greatest despair, and how printmaking, as an artform, was adapted to touch and transform the lives of millions throughout the world.

Curated by Simon Gregg, Director of the Gippsland Art Gallery, Sale, Power to the People draws on prints from the Robert Smith Collection.

About the Robert Smith Art Collection:

The Robert Smith Collection comprises 596 works by Australian and International artists spanning from 1500 to 2000. Focused on humanist values and social commitment, the collection offers a rich tapestry of artistic expression, connecting back to the Wonthaggi region through themes of manual labor, industry, and working-class life. With works by esteemed artists such as Noel Counihan, Kathe Kollwitz, and Honore Daumier, the collection serves as an invaluable resource for those interested in exploring the intersections of art, history, and society.

Image credit: Noel Counihan, ‘Hunger’, 1959, linocut s. 54 44/50, Robert Smith Collection. Courtesy of the Robert Smith Foundation and Bass Coast Shire Council.

Open to the public 24/7 

Western Lane, The Union Theatre, Wonthaggi.

96 Graham St, Wonthaggi VIC 3995

Image: Hannah Bradsworth, 2023, photograph by Lauren Murphy. Courtesy of (it's no) drama.