“YOU know, most people really don't know me” – Marilyn Monroe, 1962.
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From next Friday, February 12, MAMA Albury looks behind the spotlight with more than 150 artworks and supporting programs featuring American icon Marilyn Monroe.
Four truckloads of works have been delivered to the Dean Street gallery, which is undergoing a transformation before hanging the works.
“We craned in two extra 4m long walls yesterday morning,” MAMA curator Bianca Acimovic said.
“Signs By Knight are here today installing the new artwork for the rollerdoor, it's beautiful.
“It's going along well. And the artwork all starts going up next week.”
There are dozens of hours behind the scenes to bring Marilyn: Celebrating an American Icon to Albury.
Exhibitions coordinator Jules Boag oversees all the contractors coming in such as art handlers, painters, wall fabricators, sign writers, graphic designers, timber fabricators, installation handlers and art couriers.
“There's amazing benefits back to our community in job creation and employment with what shows like these do,” Ms Acimovic said.
Border artgoers will be treated to a far more intimate insight into Monroe’s life compared with a Marilyn Monroe exhibition which, coincidently, will open in Bendigo in March. "They are completely different exhibitions drawn from completely different collections,” Ms Acimovic said.
“Theirs is drawn from 20th Century Fox and ours is drawn from private art collections from across the Americas. Ours is more of the key iconic artists throughout history: Bert Stern, Andy Warhol, Richard Larter who have used Marilyn as a key subject in their art work.
“I guess both exhibitions are looking at why she's so interesting all these decades later.”
And Ms Acimovic ruled out seeing the eight-metre tall Forever Marilyn sculpture that has been turning heads in Bendigo in Albury’s QEII Square.
"No … but MAMA always has something up its sleeve so you never know what we're going to pull off."
