LEN POWER previews The Hurt Business, an exhibition by Omar Musa of lithographs and woodcuts that “ricochets between dark humour and poetry”.

Poet, novelist, musician and artist Omar Musa’s new solo exhibition of lithographs and woodcuts, The Hurt Business, opens on Friday at Megalo Print Studio.

To celebrate the opening, he will be giving an intimate performance to accompany the exhibition at 5.30pm on that day.

Musa says the hurt business is a phrase used to describe martial arts or boxing, but could equally refer to international politics or an arena of sanctioned violence, triumphalism and competing forces.

Whether it be the invasion of Venezuela, the genocide in Gaza, ICE agents in the streets of the US, or kill squads during the Philippines’ War On Drugs, he believes the question arises, Who gets to sanction violence? – and more importantly – Who says stop?

The Hurt Business is work that ricochets between dark humour and poetry, using the sous rature (French for “under erasure”) device to contest questions of power and moral governance.

Musa, raised in Canberra and Queanbeyan, is the son  of CityNews arts editor Helen Musa. He has released four poetry books, five hip-hop records, and two novels, most recently the novel Fierceland.

He has had several solo exhibitions, most recently All My Memories Are Mistranslations, a mix of woodcuts and cyanotypes, in 2024.

The Hurt Business, Megalo Print Studio, 21 Wentworth Avenue, Kingston, February 21-April 4.