2026 AGWA Foundation Annual Appeal
Secure Mouse for Western Australia: Help bring this extraordinary sculpture into the State Art Collection
AGWA holds the State Art Collection in trust for the people of Western Australia. Each acquisition shapes not only the Collection today, but the cultural legacy we leave for generations to come.
In 2026, we have a rare opportunity to acquire Mouse, a near life-sized bronze sculpture by internationally acclaimed artist Klara Kristalova. Her work is held in major museums around the world and is renowned for its poetic intensity, psychological depth and quiet power. Mouse is a compelling example of her practice – thoughtful, unusual and emotionally resonant.
Securing Mouse for AGWA would welcome an artist of international standing into the State Art Collection and ensure this remarkable sculpture remains in public hands, accessible to Western Australians and visitors for generations to come.
And where will this quiet observer take its place? We look forward to revealing its future home in due course.
With your support, Mouse can become part of Western Australia’s shared cultural inheritance. Tax-deductible gifts made before 30 June will help make this acquisition possible.
Klara Kristalova Mouse 2024. 1/3 Editions. Bronze, 168 x 58 x 50 cm. Photo: Carl Henrik Tillberg. © Klara Kristalova/ADAGP Paris, 2024. Courtesy of the artist and Perrotin.
About the Sculpture
Mouse is a near life-sized bronze sculpture, a quiet figure with a big personality. Part playful cartoon, part mysterious fairy tale, Mouse stands perfectly still, hands in pockets, quietly taking in the world. Its jacket, slightly flared jeans, and modest heel give a touch of 1960s cool, as if it belongs in an old film, while its presence hints at the shadows and humour of early animations.
As part of the State Art Collection, Mouse brings a sense of wonder and curiosity, inviting visitors of all ages to imagine stories and adventures. It sparks conversation, creativity and play, gently connecting childhood memories with new experiences.
Once a creature of the margins, Mouse can now take its place within AGWA’s Collection, preserved for future generations and accessible to the public to encounter, enjoy and revisit over time. Small in scale yet expansive in imagination, it is poised to delight families, young people, and anyone who appreciates a touch of magic in the everyday.
Klara Kristalova. Image courtesy of Perrotin.
About the Artist
Klara Kristalova was born in former Czechoslovakia in 1967 and moved to Sweden at age one. She studied at the Royal University College of Fine Art, Stockholm, and has been exhibiting internationally since 1994. Later this year, she will represent Sweden in the Nordic Pavilion at the Venice Biennale.
Kristalova’spieces are deeply personal, often inspired by the forests of her childhood and current surroundings, creating a dreamlike world with echoes of European fairytales – macabre, grotesque, and full of attitude.
Kristalova seeks to convey basic human emotions such as fear, love, sadness, and guilt, which emerge from her work like memories from our own childhoods. The landscapes that shape her work appear only in fragments, suggested in ceramics, bronzes, and drawings, inviting viewers to explore the stories and myths behind her characters.
Mouse is captivating, he is stationary but definitely making an appearance just like all the best sculptures do. Mouse confidently holds his space with you, he knows you will check him out – how could you not? – but doesn’t need anything from you and will leap into any fray to sort things out.
Robert Cook
AGWA Curator of Contemporary ArtHow to Give
Thank you for considering a gift to the AGWA Foundation today to help acquire Klara Kristalova’s Mouse for the State Art Collection. Every contribution is deeply valued and will play a meaningful role in bringing this vision to life.
You can support the acquisition of Mouse in multiple ways:
• Online Giving Form: Make a secure, tax-deductible gift of any amount today.
• Cheque: Made payable to AGWA Foundation.
• Direct Deposit To:
Bank: Commonwealth Bank
Branch: WA Government Banking Centre
BSB: 066-040
Account: 10500006
Please quote FoundAA2026 and your surname on the electronic transfer and provide your details to the AGWA Foundation so that we can acknowledge your donation.
Donations of $2 or more are fully tax-deductible.
All donors will be acknowledged on the 2026 Annual Appeal webpage, AGWA Annual Report, 2026 AGWA Foundation Impact Report and the AGWA Foyer LED screen, if desired.
Donors who gift $1,000 or more will be recognised in AGWA’s Annual Giving program and enjoy a year-round program of tailored access and events.
Thank you for your support. Together, we can secure Mouse for AGWA and for the people of Western Australia.
