http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/ en-us Copyright 2012 Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:36:58 +0930 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Message Stick – as the show is called – features a selection of work from the Artbank collection by eleven Indigenous artists living in urban areas throughout Australia. The twenty-one works are “personal, provocative and at the forefront of contemporary art practice”, according to curator Carrie Kibbler. Kibbler also hedges her bets a bit on the Blakness, Aboriginality or 'traditional' roots of her artists with a curatorial essay that begins: “Until recently, these artists were categorised as urban Indigenous artists, however, today many consider themselves first as contemporary Australian artists, refusing to be differentiated into a different category because of their Indigenous heritage”. However, Foreign Affairs Minister Kevin Rudd – who launched Message Stick on its travels in Canberra during NAIDOC week – was very happy to associate the artists with his heroic Sorry statement in Parliament when he was Prime Minister: “The artworks in this exhibition are strongly influenced by the experiences of the stolen generations – there is a deep grieving, dislocation and loss”. Artbank adds: “We have been at the forefront of collecting contemporary work by Indigenous artists living in urban areas since 1985. In fact, Artbank has perhaps the largest collection of work by Robert Campbell Jnr, who is often considered the father of the urban art movement, including the hard-hitting Please Welfare, Don’t Take my Kids” - which is, naturally, on the tour. Other artists involved include HJ Wedge from Campbell's generation, Julie Dowling, Ian Abdullah and Darren Siwes, and then the professionally-trained, hot younger talents of Christian Thompson, Reko Rennie, Danie Mellor, Brook Andrew and Adam Hill. Message Stick will be presented in Cape Town – at the Lovell Gallery in Woodstock through February - then The Seychelles, Port Louis, Harare, Nairobi and Abuja. The exhibition is due to finish its tour in India as part of the Ozfest program in India in January 2013. ]]> http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/aboriginal-art-in-africa.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/aboriginal-art-in-africa.php Blog Exhibition News Africa Artbank Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade Kevin Rudd Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:36:58 +0930 A case of suspected stolen Central Australian rock art is being investigated by authorities in South Australia. The Aboriginal art was recently advertised online, then withdrawn once the Department of Premier and Cabinet advised eBay it may be stolen. It has since been found the person listing the item had provided false identification details. The Aboriginal Art Directory strongly advises buyers not to source Aboriginal art from Ebay, not only could it be stolen, but there is also the possibility of it being fake art. It is always better to go for established, reputable galleries and look for ArtTrade membership. http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/suspected-stolen-red-centre-rock-art-on-ebay.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/suspected-stolen-red-centre-rock-art-on-ebay.php Blog ebay caution stolen art Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:59:44 +0930 ROCK ART ON WESTERN AUSTRALIA'S Burrup Peninsula is facing more industrial threats, despite new scientific findings that the ancient Pilbara site is "a masterpiece of human creative genius" worthy of World Heritage status. Around one million rock engravings, or petroglyphs, are scattered across the Burrup Peninsula and forty islands in the Dampier Archipelago, in northwest WA. In 2007, the Australian Heritage Council (AHC) awarded heritage protection to Burrup's richly detailed engravings of human figures, water birds, crabs, crayfish, kangaroos, turtles and fish. Also standing in the rocky landscape are mysterious upright monoliths and rows of three or four hundred upright stones. Five grounds for World Heritage listing An expert report published in late 2011 by the AHC found that Burrup rock art could qualify for UNESCO World Heritage listing on at least five grounds of 'universal value', far more than the usual one or more criteria required. The report, authored by archaeologist and rock art expert Dr Jo McDonald, describes the Burrup's engravings - created by Aboriginal peoples around 10,000 years ago - as "masterpieces of human creative genius...produced with superlative technical skill." She says the pitted, often beautiful patterns form a continuous engraving tradition by hunting-gathering peoples up to European settlement, while monumental stones, man-made quarries and shell middens record how humans adapted to changes in the landscape. Her report describes the Burrup as having "universal significance", with links to the living belief systems of traditional custodians. Dr Carmen Lawrence, AHC chair, says she will be forwarding the Council's completed advice, including the McDonald report, to Federal Heritage Minister Tony Burke within a few weeks. Worrying industrial threats She told Australian Geographic that the AHC was instructed to investigate whether the Australian government should pursue World Heritage nomination for the rock art after a Senate motion last March, when Greens MPs called for an emergency assessment of "the outstanding universal values of the Dampier Archipelago and any threats to the site." However, The Friends of Australian Rock Art (FARA), a group of rock art experts and heritage supporters, say two worrying threats loom just as this greater global recognition is being mooted. FARA Chair Judith Hugo says nearly 20 per cent of the rock art precinct has been destroyed or disturbed in recent decades to make way for the Northwest Shelf gas processing plant, a fertiliser plant and other industry activity on the Burrup. Explosive development She says more could disappear if Woodside Petroleum cancels its controversial plans to build a gas processing plant in the Kimberley, and brings more gas ashore on the Burrup. This became more likely last week when Woodside announced it was selling its 50% share in the Kimberley project. A second threat is a proposal to build an explosives plant on the Burrup, announced last month by oil and gas company the Apache Corporation. "Apache has previously stated that it would not go onto the Burrup in light of the Aboriginal heritage values, but somehow their ethical stand has been reversed," says Judith. "Burrup rock art is a universal record of mankind's development." Apache's spokesman David Parker says the company has a record of sensitivity to heritage, having previously relocated a natural gas plant elsewhere "in recognition of concerns about rock art on the Burrup Peninsula." He says Apache has met with FARA members to discuss their concerns. http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/new-threat-to-worlds-largest-rock-art-collection.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/new-threat-to-worlds-largest-rock-art-collection.php Blog Pilbara rock art collection Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:55:22 +0930 In an exciting new presentation, Your Collection has been displayed chronologically and traces art made in the early nineteenth century, locally and around the world, to the art of today. Your Collection 1800 – today brings together an extraordinary group of over 450 Western Australian Indigenous and non-Indigenous, national and international art, craft and design from the State Art Collection. An ongoing exhibition at the Art Gallery of Western Australia. http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/your-collection-1800-today.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/02/your-collection-1800-today.php Blog Art Gallery of Western Australia Brook Andrew Eileen Yaritja Stevens Rover Thomas Your Collection to today Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:42:41 +0930 This year’s exhibition has a total of 27 artworks by 20 artists all in the running for over $50,000 in prizes. The finalists are: Paola Balla - (two works) Katen Boy Sacred Ibis Trevor Turbo Brown - (two works) Owl Dreaming Every Dog Have Their Day Megan Cadd The Couch Teddy Chessels The Lone Canoe Jody Croft Rainbow Energy Katrina Doolan Babies Are Our Future Gwendoline Garoni Regrowth in my Tribal Country Daniel King - (two works) Sports Star Full-Blooded Jason B King Agrotis Infusia Brian Martin - (two works) Methexical Countryscape: Wurundjeri #2 Methexical Countryside: Wiradjuri #2 Glenda Nicholls Ochre Net Steaphan Paton My Bullock Simon Penrose Eyes Are The Windows To The Soul Eva Ponting Turtle Spirit Dreaming Wayne Qilliam Guided by Spirits Reko Rennie Message Stick (Gold) Dallas Scott - (two works) Storyteller Fisherman Smoke Signal Lyn Warren Sunset Gloria Whalan - (two works) Guulaangga The Frog A Night of Remembrance Naretha Williams - (two works) Self Portrait 1 – SLIP Series Self Portrait 3 – SLIP Series The exhibition runs from 10 – 31 March 2012 Email for more information at viaa@fortyfivedownstairs.com http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/victorian-indigenous-art-awards-finalists.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/victorian-indigenous-art-awards-finalists.php Blog Brian Martin Dallas Scott Daniel King Eva Ponting Glenda Nicholls Gloria Whalan Gwendoline Garoni Jason B King Jody Croft Katrina Doolan Lyn Warren Megan Cadd Naretha Williams Paola Balla Reko Rennie Steaphan Paton Teddy Chessels Trevor Turbo Brown Victorian Indigenous Art Awards Finalists 2012 Wayne Qilliam Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:37:49 +0930 SMH last week? But, in Foley's Fabulous view of events, Whitlam let them down even more than Holt – failing to outface Messers Bjelke-Peterson and Court in the States, and coming up with a namby-pamby thing called Native Title. And worse, it was only on offer to that lot up in the Northern Territory. “Native Title is not Land Rights” - Foley is crystal clear. And the reason for this distinction emerged in his disavowal of that thing most have us have thought fundamental to Aboriginal belief systems – their relationship with land or country. That's just “airy-fairy nonsense” for the “ooga-boogas” up North. Now where have I heard that distasteful description – ooga-boogas - of the 40/50,000 people who live remote in the NT, WA, SA and Queensland before – people who may not have the sophistication to entertain a White audience for 120 minutes like Foley, but who cling to a complexity of culture built up over 40,000 years and who, according to Prof Jaynie Anderson in the new 'Cambridge Companion to Australian Art' have found ways of communicating elements of that on canvas to produce “the only (Australian) art that has found a substantial international audience”? Why, those same 'ooga-boogas' appeared in Blak artist Richard Bell's 'Bell's Theorem', the text necessary to explain the painting that won the National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Award. Ironically, he managed to attain this artistic peak while denying he was an 'Aboriginal artist', while wearing that T-shirt declaring 'White Girls Can't Hump' to offend Chief Minister Claire Martin, and while mockingly claiming that the Dreaming had now descended on him in Brisbane. Foley disavows the Dreaming too. His spiritual authorities are Marcus Garvey and Malcolm X; and, though he's acted (unforgettably in 'Dogs in Space') and administered the arts as Director of the Aboriginal Arts Board, I'm sure that Foley's canvases (if he painted) would colourfully reflect his political views rather than the airy-fairy aspects of his Gumbyngger inheritance. That, after all, is what ooga-boogas try to do. Incidentally, at the Australia Council – unmentioned in his theatrical show – Foley did his best to disrupt ceremonial activities in the North by defunding organisations like the Aboriginal Cultural Foundation which had the temerity to employ White functionaries to assist in organising traditional events like the Groote Eylandt dance festivals that brought tribal groups up from the APY Lands, across from the far Kimberley and over the water from the Cape to maintain and share culture with each other. No wonder the Intervention – and all it's doing to deny self-determination to remote Aborigines – received scant mention in the show. But 'Foley' is an important show in its nakedness towards this hot-potato subject-matter – even Bell and his proppaNOW mob in Brisbane are shy and retiring by comparison. For surely only Foley could coin an indignity like “Noel Pearson makes Neville Bonner look like Che Guevara!”, and deliver it with such insouciant charm. But from as one-eyed a viewpoint as Foley himself, I'm grateful to Gary for dissociating his urban mob from tribal Australia – something I've often thought should also happen to the two unrelated art forms that are both called 'Aboriginal', allowing each to stand on its own two feet. As Nino Culotta might have put it, “They're a different mob”. ]]> http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/foley.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/foley.php Blog Feature Other Event Aboriginal Cultural Foundation Black Power Foley Gary Foley Noel Pearson Sydney Festival Tent Embassy Tony Abbott Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:44:11 +0930 Twenty artists are in the running for prizes totalling more than $50,000 as part of the Victorian Government's 2012 Victorian Indigenous Art Awards. The awards, now in their seventh year, profile the diversity of Indigenous arts practice in Victoria and showcase the uniqueness of south-east Australian Aboriginal art. Premier and Minister for the Arts Ted Baillieu said the Victorian Indigenous Art Awards played an important role in celebrating and promoting the work of the State's Indigenous artists and our unique Koorie culture. "There are many voices and many generations of Indigenous artists in Victoria working to uphold traditions and to express their culture in new and distinct ways," Mr Baillieu said. "The shortlisted artists work across a variety of mediums, from traditional painting and weaving techniques to photography, sculpture, video and street art." Mr Baillieu said the 27 shortlisted works were selected from 132 entries for this year's awards. The awards, which give prizes across five categories, are open to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists living in Victoria. This year's finalists include both regional and metropolitan artists, past winners and several who have not been shortlisted before. Seven of the shortlisted artists have two artworks on the shortlist. The finalists were selected by an expert judging panel comprising Dr Treahna Hamm, an Aboriginal artist; Clinton Nain, a Torres Strait Islander artist; and Jason Smith, Director of Heide Museum of Art. The winners of the 2012 Victorian Indigenous Art Awards will be announced on 9 March 2012 and the finalist exhibition will be open to the public from 10 to 31 March 2012 at the awards partner gallery, fortyfivedownstairs at 45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne. Details of the award categories are attached. For more information and the full list of shortlisted artists and their work visit the Victorian Indigenous Art Awards blog: www.indigenousartawards.com.au 2012 VICTORIAN INDIGENOUS ART AWARDS – CATEGORIES Deadly Art Award – $25,000 (plus a Highly Commended award to the value of $5,000) Supported by Arts Victoria Koorie Heritage Trust Acquisition Award – $5,000 Sponsored by Koorie Heritage Trust CAL Victorian Indigenous Art Award for Three Dimensional Works – $5,000 (plus a Highly Commended award to the value of $1,500) Sponsored by Copyright Agency Limited, Cultural Fund CAL Victorian Indigenous Art Award for Works on Paper – $5,000 (plus a Highly Commended award to the value of $1,500) Sponsored by Copyright Agency Limited, Cultural Fund Arts Victoria People's Choice Award – $2,500: Awarded to the artist who receives the highest number of votes from the public, via the Arts Victoria website (voting opens on Friday 9 March 2012) - Supported by Arts Victoria http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/shortlist-announced-for-2012-victorian-indigenous-art-awards.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/shortlist-announced-for-2012-victorian-indigenous-art-awards.php Blog 2012 Art Awards Sun, 29 Jan 2012 04:51:27 +0930 Excerpt taken from Artprice, Contemporary Australian Art (01/20/2012) http://www.artmarketinsight.com/wallet/amidetails/showweb/1642]]> http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/artprice-predicts-strong-aboriginal-art-market.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/artprice-predicts-strong-aboriginal-art-market.php Blog art trends artprice Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:09:15 +0930 The winners of the country’s most recognised awards for Indigenous artists have been released. Janet Fieldhouse took out the $20000 first prize for her work Tattoo, a sculptural installation that uses a light box and transparent porcelain to explore ritual scarification. Vera Cooper shared the $10000 second prize with Cynthia Vogler for her triptych of ceramic figures, titled Generation, Yorta Yorta Elders and Land and Law Gathering. She was also awarded the $3000 Victorian prize. Nancy Wilson and Emily Ngarnal Evans were highly commended for their works, titled Barramundi and Spotted Stingray respectively. The awards were announced at Shepparton Art Museum. Curator of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art at the National Gallery of Australia, Tina Baum, who judged the entries, said the award was a powerful example of Indigenous art. ‘‘I was really impressed by the high calibre of works entered and the diversity of communities and artists represented,’’ she said. ‘‘This made for a hard job to select the winning artists. I congratulate all the short-listed artists and Shepparton Art Museum for continuing to support and highlight such an important art medium for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists today.’’ An exhibition containing work by 18 artists short-listed from across Australia will run from February 18 to April 22 at the Shepparton Art Museum. An exhibition of work by one of the Indigenous Ceramic Art Award’s major patrons, Dr Gloria Fletcher AO, who died last year, will run alongside the Indigenous Ceramic Art Award as a tribute to her generosity and achievements. The award is supported by the Sir Andrew and Lady Fairley Foundation, Yulgibar Foundation, Margaret Lawrence Bequest and the S. J. Rothfield Fund. http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/2011-indigenous-ceramic-awards.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/2011-indigenous-ceramic-awards.php Newspaper 2011 Indigenous Ceramic Awards Cynthia Vogler Emily Ngarnal Evans Janet Fieldhouse Nancy Wilson Vera Cooper Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:33:19 +0930 An Indigenous Visual Arts Resident role is being offered through the Indigenous Visual Arts Residency program through Arts Victoria in partnership with the Office of the Arts to an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander artist or arts-worker living in Victoria. It is a 4.5 to 6 months contract with a salary of $44,000 per annum pro-rata (plus 9% superannuation). This position is offered on a full or part time basis. This is a new position and will be filled as soon as possible. Applications close 5pm on Friday 3 February 2012. For a job description and key selection criteria, please contact: Lindy Allen Director Regional Arts Victoria PO Box 600 Port Melbourne VIC 3207 enquiry@rav.net.au Fax: 03 9646 3832 http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/indigenous-visual-arts-resident.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/indigenous-visual-arts-resident.php Media Mon, 23 Jan 2012 11:10:31 +0930 Beyond Sacred – the second last year an enlarged edition of the first – have been published with serious essays and accompanying exhibitions. Loans have been generously made to exhibitions all over the world. And now they have their own dedicated exhibition – Heart & Soul – opening today at the world's foremost Aboriginal art museum, AAMU, the Museum of contemporary Aboriginal art in Utrecht. The show is a personal selection by the Lavertys, working with curator Georges Petitjean of the work of five of the most highly regarded artists in the Australian art world: Sally Gabori from a remote island in the Gulf of Carpentaria, for whom her art is her language, since only a handful of others speak her Kayardild tongue; Daniel Walbidi, a desert man driven to live on the coast of Western Australia and use its colours; Rammey Ramsey, an elder from the unique Jirrawun art centre in the East Kimberley; Naata Nungurrayi, from the tribe that started Aboriginal painting off at Papunya in 1971, now living on her own country at Kintore in the Central Desert; and Ginger Riley, a highly individual voice, painting the mythic landscapes of Arnhemland. Their works are included in the collections of all major Australian art galleries and in international collections, and only Gabori has been seen before at AAMU. The selection shows the rich variety in Indigenous art from different regions – always a hard thing for foreign viewers to understand. For 'Aboriginal art' is not a homogeneous thing – but is a reflection of the 300 tribes that once peopled the Australian continent, of hugely different landscapes and mythologies, and of regional styles developing around art centres established in remote communities. The Lavertys have not collected Blak indigenous art – which is fundamentally political. For their passion grew from Colin's earlier collection of hard-edged abstraction by artists like Dick Watkins and Peter Booth. And when the couple first encountered apparently abstract Aboriginal art in 1988 at the Brisbane Expo, it spoke a similar language to them. Their book, Beyond Sacred takes that approach even further. Essayists, including Colin argue that, though there are complex stories and spirituality behind their paintings, there is also an aesthetic intent in their chosen artists that is at least a match for the ethnographic role a painter may have to communicate lore within his or her community. Georges Petitjean adds: “The focus on five artists enables us to present them as contemporary 'name' artists, which is still needed here in Europe in order to avoid the 'anonymous Aboriginal artist' label”. AAMU has previously taken the same attitude by showing Aboriginal art beside contemporary Dutch painters. ]]> http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/lavertys-in-the-netherlands.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/lavertys-in-the-netherlands.php Europe AAMU Aboriginal art Colin Laverty Georges Petitjean Liz Laverty Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:31:38 +0930 Young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in the Sunshine Coast and Gympie regions are being urged to come together to embrace and showcase their culture via song writing and recording, hip-hop dancing and art workshops based on the theme of identity. The workshops, known as Sounds Like Me, are being run by United Synergies in partnership with local Indigenous creative artists, and will culminate in performances at the annual Booin Gari Festival, to be held on Tuesday, April 3. The festival is a celebration of the history and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Sunshine and Cooloola Coast region. Program coordinator Leanne Milmlow said in order to connect with culture and the local area, the young people would kick off the series of workshops by participating in a cultural landscape tour– concluding the day with a bush tucker meal with mentors, artists and United Synergies staff. This would allow the young people to get to know each other and allow the mentoring and support to begin - underpinning the success of the project, Leanne said. Three workshops are planned, with participants able to select one, two or all three workshops. Workshop 1 –Song writing and recording facilitated by De Greer-Yindimincarlie - will commence in early January 2012 – allowing 20 participants to work in groups of five (two days a week for eight weeks). Each group will compose, record a song and produce a CD which will be available at Booin Gari. Workshop 2 - Local Indigenous fine artist - Peter 'Murray Djeripi' Mulcahy – will facilitate art workshops commencing in early February 2012. Twenty young people will work in four groups to produce their own expression of identity. Workshop 3 – Hip hop dance facilitated by a professional dance company Contact Inc. Forty young people will explore their identity in the artistic form of dance and lyrics working towards a performance at Booin Gari - this will commence in early March 2012. The Sounds Like Me project is funded by Festivals Australia and the Sunshine Coast Council. Contact United Synergies : Booin Gari Festival, Tewantin on Phone: 07 5442 4277 or Fax: 07 5442 4846. http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/indigenous-youth-arts-project-to-explore-identity.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/indigenous-youth-arts-project-to-explore-identity.php Festival Booin Gari Contact Inc De Greer-Yindimincarlie Festivals Australia Peter Murray Djeripi Mulcahy Sunshine Coast Council Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:43:30 +0930 Dreaming Festival for the Olympics, backed up by the pair of Adelaide Festivals from Peter Sellars and Stephen Page, when I thought that it had become clear that no Aussie arts festival should exist without a significant indigenous contribution. But I've come to realise that few Australian festival directors understand the complexities involved in working with indigenous artists. For instance the time-line for the creation of the stage work, I Am Eora which opened in Sydney on 8th Jan began in July 2008 with a conversation between Hume and director/writer Wesley Enoch, Three and a half long years later he delivers a politically-correct mishmash in terms of the content – though I hasten to add that it's never boring! How could it be with the delightful Stiff Gins singing effective songs such as 'Diamonds in the Water' and 'Redfern Girl'. What has really worked is the context in which the show is presented. The excellent Lisa Havilah has taken over at Carriageworks – and has taken the bull by the horns to declare she's in Redfern, not the mythological suburb of Eveleigh that was invented to avoid the association with Redfern's capacity to self-destruct. “Redfern? It's the Black Capital of Australia” is the challenging declaration from Lily Shearer, GM of Gadigal Information Services, who makes multiple appearances in Carriageworks' Black Capital program – supporting the crowded Family & Culture Day last Saturday, interviewed for the tiny TV features that can be viewed by three or four people at a time in Brook Andrew's elegant suite of proto-Wiradjuri caravans – definitely worth the effort, but not exactly easy pickin's - and on the Advisory Group for Enoch's massive stage production. Creation by committee is always hard. But the brilliant original idea that the Aboriginal identities who greeted the White invaders in 1788 can be characterised as the Warrior (Pemulwuy), the Nurturer (Barangaroo) and the Interpreter (or should that be Sell-out? – Bennelong) – and that these three divisions of society hold good (or bad) today, was certainly worth exploring. Sadly, the inimitable actor/personality, Jack Charles – who turns out to be Bennelong – rises from his seat in the bleachers and declares that the grey-suited Aborigine who's cast off everything for a pattern of ochre (Wiradjuri?) accompanied by songs in language to put an end to historical reflection: “It's time to move on”, he shouts. And we do. No time for the ancient wisdom and spirituality that produced the oldest civilisation in the world – now is the time for rap, blues and appalling choreography! Of course today's Pemulwuy gets shot by a cop – producing the night's undoubted coup de theatre. The cop chalks around his body, which is transferred to the backcloth screen. This then morphs into rock incised engravings of Baime, Daramulan, etc – a timeless recall of the past, matched when Barangaroo takes to the water and casts her line for rock-incised fishes and whales. Pity that the rest of the time in the present a pregnant Miranda Tapsell seems to be mopping the floor! Many another Barangaroo for today is cited too – including Mum Shirl and a foul-mouthed, disappointed bride. But none more appropriate than Linda Burney, MP and former Minister, who recalled her inaugural speech to Parliament – including reference to the little-remembered declaration of martial law in Bathurst and the subsequent official massacre of Wiradjuri. In Jack Charles – ex-prisoner, ex-heroin addict – now reformed, I suppose we have the archetypal Bennelong for today. The sell-out cleaned-up. “I can tell you the stories of this place”, he offers – but, sadly, doesn't. “I am Eora”, concludes this Yorta Yorta man. Some mistake here??? Perhaps it'll get cleared up at next Saturday's Symposium on the history of Black Theatre in Oz – which of course began in Redfern (if you exclude all that story-telling out bush). That's Jan 14th 10am to 4.30pm at Carriageworks – booked via sydneyfestival.org/symposium And if that fails, it will certainly be resolved by Foley – Gary of that name – who's telling his own story from Black Power to academia in the Opera House from 24th January. “History will be kind to me”, Foley is quoted as saying, “for I intend to write it”!]]> http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/black-capital.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/black-capital.php Blog Feature Festival Industry News Black Capital Carriageworks I Am Eora Jack Charles Lindy Hume Lisa Havilah Sydney Festival Wesley Enoch Thu, 12 Jan 2012 08:56:07 +0930 The National Indigenous Photomedia Forum, Shadow Life: Moving Image and Remembered By are three separate events presented by ACMI as part of the Melbourne Indigenous Arts Festival 2012. The National Indigenous Photomedia Forum will address the the obstacles faced by Indigenous people who have an interest in photomedia, film and online media but struggle to be represented in many professional media and photographic associations. The forum will present professional development and networking opportunities in order to assist Indigenous artists to to develop knowledge and skills. Speaking at the forum are ACMI's Artist in Residence Reko Rennie, Indigenous speaker and photo journalist Mervyn Bishop, broadcast journalist Daniel Browning, Patricia Adjaye from Copyright Agency Ltd., photographer Darren Slewes, photo-media artist Diane Jones, Maori multimedia artist Lisa Relhana and visual artist r e a. The three day program will also include workshops by photographer and educator Dr Les Walkling and more. The forum will run from Wednesday, February 8th till Friday, February 10th and is free to Indigenous artists. The second event, Shadow Life: Moving Image is a free event that will be presented as a looped screening from 10AM to 6PM with a contextual talk by curator Djon Mundine at 3PM. The screening is an exhibition of moving image works by contemporary Indigenous Australian artists, and explores the notion of the shadow as a representation of the soul. Artists participating in Shadow Life include Vernon Ah Kee (Whitefella Normal, Blackfella Me, 2004), Bindi Cole (Seventy Times Seven, 2011), Destiny Deakin and Virginia Fraser (Good Golly Miss Dolly, 2005), Fiona Foley (Bliss, 2006), Genevieve Grieves (Picturing the Old People, 2005), Tracy Moffatt (Other, 2009) and Christian Thompson (Gamu Mambu (Blood Song), 2010). Shadow Life will be presented on February 11th at ACMI. The final event, Remembered By, is a screening and talk program with a focus on Indigenous representation on screen. ACMI Artist in Residence Reko Rennie has selected a variety of films which feature Indigenous peoples and issues such as Wrong Side of the Road (Ned Lander, 1981), Babakiueria (Don Featherstone, 1987) and Urban Aboriginal Artist, Talking about Aboriginal Art (PeterLipscombe, David Roberts, Chris Willing, 1991). Leading figures in the Indigenous arts community have also been invited to respond to the works from a contemporary perspective. Speakers include Glenn Iseger-Pilkington (Nyoongar and Yamatji peoples of WA, Curator of Indigenous Art at the Art Gallery of Western Australia) and Genevieve Greeves (Lead Curator on the redevelopment of Bunjilaka at Melbourne Museum). The event is also free and will be running from 11AM on Sunday, February 12th at ACMI. http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/acmi-presents-indigenous-arts-festival.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/acmi-presents-indigenous-arts-festival.php Festival Bindi Cole Christian Thompso Destiny Deakin Fiona Foley Genevieve Grieves Tracy Moffatt Vernon Ah Kee Virginia Fraser Thu, 12 Jan 2012 08:15:23 +0930 Novy Rich has been creating gorgeous Aboriginal art on cakes for over 20 years. Many of the designs are inspired by her husband, Mundara Koorang, renowned international Aboriginal artist, author, actor and Elder, and daughter Nganuwaay Koolyn's artwork. From simplistic meeting places and dreaming trails to hand made iced figurines and stories from the Dreamtime, the range of Aboriginal cakes is extensive. She has created cakes for weddings, birthday's, special events and conferences - each one a unique design. Cake flavours range from her own recipes Wickedly Chocolate cake, Vanilla and Macadamia, Red Velvet, Almond & Lily Pilly, White Chocolate Mud, Chocolate Mud and Aussie Fruit & Macadamia. Novy uses only the finest available ingredients and dot work is created with Royal Icing. Priced between $50 - $180. She can be contacted on 61 408 989 819 or email novy@mundara.com.au http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/aboriginal-art-on-a-cake.php http://www.aboriginalartnews.com.au/2012/01/aboriginal-art-on-a-cake.php Blog Dot Cakes Mundara Koorang Nganuwaay Koolyn Novy Rich Wed, 04 Jan 2012 13:58:38 +0930