New SECCA exhibitions offer local stories and global perspectives

Bega Valley Shire Council is excited to announce the launch of two upcoming exhibitions at SECCA (South East Centre for Contemporary Art) on Friday 11 July that offer distinct yet interconnected perspectives on the Bega Valley landscape.

Jess MacNeil. Photo by Effy Alexakis. Bonita Ely. Photo by Jessica Maurer.

Bonita Ely. Photo by Jessica Maurer. Jess MacNeil. Photo by Effy Alexakis.

2 July 2025

Gallery Director, Janice Falsone said the two new solo exhibitions, Among Other Entanglements by Jess MacNeil and Bithry. Time. by Bonita Ely, explore personal and place-based relationships with the natural environment.

“We have two leading Australian artists with strong ties to the region expressing very different perspectives but both with a deep sense of place,” Ms Falsone said.

“SECCA’s Gallery 1 will house Jess MacNeil’s Among Other Entanglements exhibition which displays several works developed during her 2022 residency at Myer House in Mimosa Rocks National Park, hosted by the former Bega Valley Regional Gallery.

“Now based in London, Jess was raised in the Bega Valley and is known for her multidisciplinary practice that explores how we relate – physically, conceptually and psychologically – to our environment.

“Working across media, but grounded in painting and moving image, she approaches painting as moving images and video and film as painterly.”

Bonita Ely’s Bithry. Time. exhibition will be displayed in SECCA’s Chambers Gallery.

“Bonita’s exhibition features a series of drawings and video work developed over many decades, beginning in the 1980s,” Ms Falsone said.

“It also includes a collaborative work, created with her daughter Marina Ely: a rubbing taken from the wooden block floor of the Barn where they stayed each summer for many years. The Barn is an experimental structure built in 1965 by Marina’s grandfather, the architect Roy Grounds.”

Bega Valley residents and visitors are invited to the free launch exhibition on Friday 11 July from 5:30pm.

“Jess and Bonita will be at the launch so guests will have the chance to meet them and hear about their work,” Ms Falsone said.

“Both artists offer moving and memorable experiences that will speak to locals and visitors alike. We’re very fortunate to share Bonita Ely and Jess MacNeil’s work at SECCA.”

Entry to the launch event and exhibitions is free and all are welcome. Bookings are encouraged.

Both exhibitions run from 12 July to 13 September.

SECCA is open Monday to Friday from 10am to 5pm and Saturdays 10am to 2pm (closed Sundays and public holidays).

Public program schedule

SECCA will also run a suite of associated public programs, including:

A special In Conversation event with artists Jess MacNeil and Bonita Ely facilitated by Gallery Director Janice Falsone from 11am on Saturday 12 July. Free event, bookings encouraged (secca.com.au).
Kids holiday workshop: Zine my Scene (ages 9-12). Inspired by the work and activism of Bonita Ely, children will create an eight-page zine about a place, scene or issue that is important to them. 1pm-3pm, Wednesday 16 July at SECCA. $25 per child, bookings essential (secca.com.au).
Join Bonita Ely for an Artist Talk with Marina Ely, and a site visit to the Barn, 2pm-4pm, Saturday 16 August at Myer House, Mimosa Rocks National Park, 97 Middle Beach Road, Tanja. Free event, bookings essential as places are limited (secca.com.au).

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Bega NSW 2550
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