Lisa Reihana brings truth to history

Two hundred years ago, a French wallpaper pictured the Pacific: the islands and empire in perfect harmony against windless calm seas. But it was decoration. Pure fantasy.

Until artist Lisa Reihana made history flicker — adding ceremony, desire, misunderstanding, and violence.

Her vast video work In Pursuit of Venus [infected] premiered in Auckland, then at the New Zealand Pavilion at the 2017 Venice Biennale. She took a 19th-century French wallpaper, once exotic decor, and transformed it into a living panorama.

Reihana talks about what came after that breakthrough and about her latest pieces, at the Sydney Contemporary and Ngununggula.