Exhibition Review: Tandanya Adelaide South Australia January - June 1991. Interviews with curators Kerry Giles Kurwingie and John Kean. Images of inma at Ernabella included in the article.
Fortunately the artists are capable of overturning all the newly acceptable conceits about them, and they might deny most of the assumptions that multicultural academics make about them, whilst still giving a new window on our world, as indeed, all good art from anywhere will.
The Australian National Gallery's library has just completed a project which documented ethnic and immigrant objects in about 750 photographs. The bulk of these photographs show textile and ceramic craft brought with immigrants to Australia or made in Australia following traditional methods and designs. Nearly 20 ethnic groups from Europe, the Middle East and Asia are represented. Photos of textiles included.
Looks at the art practice of Ginger Riley Munduwalawala, born in 1937 at Ngukurr in the Northern Territory. Good colour photos of the artist and some works.
The tendency to pigeon hole 'ethnic' art as a second class art practised by minority groups is common in Australia too... Dihedron is a group of artists and supporters operating in Brisbane who share the common goal of helping artists in socio-cultural isolation.
In December 1990 the South Australian Government announced a new 'Multiculturalism-in-the-Arts' Program to encourage major arts organisations in receipt of government funding to increase their activities for people from linguistic and culturally diverse backgrounds.
It is fair to say that the development of multicultural arts and the recognition of cultural diversity in Queensland is still in its early stages. Photos (6) of an event at the Cafe Folkloric.
I migrated to Australia from China in March 1983 with nothing but 60 kg of books and manuscripts plus a big cultural bundle - all the things; the Classical Literature, the History and the Philosophy that I had been taught over the last 24 years....
Tang Qizhong is a painter and Fine Arts educator from China. He writes about his art practice and the relationship between art practices and institutions in China and Australia.
The artist writes about her art practice, in particular her preoccupation with the Australian landscape and how people perceive it. Two images are included: 'Secret Self' and 'Blanket' both from 1990.
Making a TV documentary about indigenous people's television in Australia. Photographs on location at Ernabella in the Pitjantjatjara lands of far north west South Australia.
The Broome Mix is useful to bear in mind when thinking on all things multicultural - cultural diversity. In Broome that's culture - a mix of Aboriginal, Asian and European.