Latest news with #IndigenousArt
CBC
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Indigenous artists showcased in Shakaat Artist Residency in Whitehorse
The Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre in Whitehorse is hosting its annual Shakaat Artist Residency. Visitors can come see different Indigenous artists from around and outside the territory. This week, CBC's Isabella Calissi spoke with a traditional handpoke tattoo artist — and learned about the cultural medicine that goes into the practice.
SBS Australia
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- SBS Australia
Changing the Face of Circular Quay with Alison Page
Alison Page is a proud Yuin and Dhurrawal woman and artist who will see her work become a permanent feature in Sydney's Circular Quay. Alison shares with NITV Radio all about her sculpture, Badjgama Ngunda Whuliwulawala (Black Women Rising) the announcement of which has been commissioned by Lendlease, the manufacturing by UAP as part of the luxury residential One Circular Quay and Waldorf Astoria Sydney hotel development. Alison shares the experience of collaboration throughout the development with the formation of Sydney Coastal Aboriginal Women's Group and her personal connection to the storytelling saying, "as she rises from the water, she is the mixing of the saltwater and freshwater, she is the energy and essence that lives within Aboriginal women in Sydney today and she is Country"
SBS Australia
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- SBS Australia
'Watershed moment': Kngwarray at the Tate Modern marks first major solo exhibition of the artist in Europe
Emily Kam Kngwarray came to art late in her life. Born in 1914, an Anmatyerr woman from Alhalker Country, she started producing her first batiks in the 1980's. Now, hanging in London's Tate Modern Gallery, 83 pieces spanning her 19 year career are on display. Warumungu and Luritja woman and lead curator, Kelli Cole, says the works are an extension of culture. "What you actually see in her work, batik and painting, is actually her culture, that is displayed or depicted onto those paintings. So everything that was important to Kngwarray is a part of her cultural connection to that country, is about her responsibilities to country. It is all about that body paint, that gestural mark that you actually paint when you're doing ceremony. So when you're looking at Kngwarray's paintings, they are just this total connection to who she is as an Anmatyerr woman." Five years in the making, the exhibition is the first major solo exhibition for an Indigenous Australian artist at the Tate. Described as one of Australia's preeminent artists, Emily Kam Kngwarray is one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th century. Her works include paintings, textiles, and works on paper, and draw their inspiration from a deep connection to Country and cultural traditions. Having travelled to Kngwarray's community upwards of twelve times over the years, Kelli Cole says working with community was central to the curatorial process. "So when I talk about her cultural responsibilities, Kngwarray was a senior elder of her community, so she actually had to partake in ceremony. And so what that meant was they would go on country, they would paint themselves up, they would sing a song. That song had a specific song for each ceremony that she did. And with her gestural marks within her batiks and her paintings actually come from that extraordinary knowledge that she had. So prior to painting, she had been doing that for such a long time." The exhibition includes 83 pieces, some of which have never been shown in public before and have come from private collections from across Europe and America. While Emily Kam Kngwarray is well known in the Australian art world, her works are less recognised in Europe. Kelli Cole says by being on display somewhere like the Tate Modern, the works will gain even wider acclaim. "Look, her impact in Australia is huge. Kngwarray's had several solo exhibitions in Australia and in Japan. So she's a name that is very well known in Australia as a major, major artist. By bringing her works here to the Tate Modern, we are hoping that her name is going to be synonymous with the European sort of vocabulary. It's gonna be Emily Kam Kngwarray, Jackson Pollock, all of these Picassos. We're really hoping that we can actually put her on the world scale or the world stage and people will start knowing her works." The exhibition opened last week and runs until January 11th 2026 at the Tate Modern gallery in London. Considered part of a wider shift to showcase artists previously left out of the spotlight, Art critic Tabish Khan says it is a historic moment for the gallery. "It definitely feels like a watershed moment for Tate Modern to have such a sizable exhibition of an Aboriginal artist. And we're definitely seeing more museums showcasing Indigenous and First Nations artists. And I think it's a reflection of a few things. Number one, that we've neglected these artists and not really shown them, focusing more on Western art history. And two, a recognition that these are cultures that are very much in tune with nature. And part of the problem with the world is the fact that we haven't been in tune with nature. And now we're realising that mistake a bit too late. And these are artists who knew about this from the get-go and we should appreciate what they're telling us in their art."
SBS Australia
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- SBS Australia
History made as first major Emily Kam Kngwarray exhibition opens in Europe
Emily Kam Kngwarray was once asked why people loved her paintings. "I paint my Country and people love my Country," she responded. The senior Anmatyerr woman from Alhalker Country started painting in her seventies, seven years before her death in 1996. Her work depicts her life and her deep knowledge of culture and Country. She is one of the twentieth century's most remarkable artists. Her pieces are cherished across the world and some now hang in a new exhibition at the Tate Modern in London. Five years in the making, the expansive show is a collaboration with the National Gallery of Australia and the first major solo exhibition for an Indigenous Australian artist at the Tate. Co-curator of the exhibition and the Adjunct Curator of Indigenous Art at the Tate Modern Kimberley Moulton told NITV displaying Kngwarray's works in the United Kingdom will introduce new audiences to Indigenous art. The Yorta Yorta woman hopes the show will invite people to learn more about our cultures. Source: Supplied / Kathleen Arundell 'For the first time, we're going to have Tate audiences that are thinking about what Country means to Aboriginal people, not just land, but Country,' she said. 'What we embody in that, in terms of the plants and the land, but also the spiritual aspects of Country, the cultural aspects of Country.' Ms Moulton said sharing culture through art was an important aspect of Kngwarray's practice and this latest showing sees her evolution as an artist. 'I think with the exhibition it's really important to acknowledge that she was very intentional in her work,' she said. 'There was an intent to share her culture with the world, to share these deep layers of Country and knowledge that she had and quite a brilliant approach to colour as well.' Warumungu and Luritja woman and lead curator, Kelli Cole, has worked on previous iterations of the exhibition in collaboration with Hettie Perkins. She brings with her a strong connection with Kngwarray's work and with her community and Country. Having travelled to Kngwarray's community upwards of twelve times over the years, she said working with them was central to the curatorial process. 'Every painting, every wall text, every video, everything we've ever made for this exhibition, her family see it and approve it before we ever display it and that is really, really important,' said Ms Cole. Renowned artist Emily Kam Kngwarray. Credit: NITV The exhibition includes 83 pieces, some of which have never been seen before and have come out of private collections from across Europe and America. Ms Cole said that Kngwarray's global reach and impact is down to her ability to move people of all backgrounds. 'We're in this room that is all about Country and I've got goosebumps talking about it," she said. "There's a visceral feeling about her work and I think that is because knowing that her work is all about painting those ceremonies…the Country that she does ceremony for, so she vitalises that Country, Country is vitalised and it gives back to her." She said Country strikes her in the art. 'As an Aboriginal woman, I feel it, but when I'm with my non-Indigenous colleagues and friends and visitors that have seen this exhibition at the National Gallery or even stand in front of her work regardless of where they are, they always say that they feel something," she said. "I think that is extraordinary.' Lead curator Kelli Cole (left) and Adjunct Curator of Indigenous Art at the Tate Modern, Kimberley Moulton. Credit: NITV Ms Moulton said Kngwarray's practice of drawing solely on her knowledge of and connection to Country, is what makes her a remarkable artist. 'She wasn't looking towards Europe or America in her work, she was very much informed by Country, she was reading and interpreting her land,' Ms Moulton said. 'She started painting in her late seventies, so [there were] decades of this deep connection and I think it's really interesting to see the art world be so responsive to her work in that way because I think what they're responding to is this incredible detail to being true to the cultural ways of being, of her lens, the way she looked at Country and then applied that to the canvas is so unique.' It wasn't a refusal of the Western canon - it just wasn't important. She didn't need it because she had Country and she had culture, and that influenced everything that she was doing, and that was her story that she was telling. Kimberley Moulton, Adjunct Curator of Indigenous Art at the Tate Modern. Kngwarray also regularly painted her namesake, kam, the seedpods of the anwerlarr (pencil yam), an important Dreaming for Kngwarray's Country, Alhalker, showing just how intertwined her identity and Country was. "I paint my plant, the one I am named after," she once said. "Kam is its name. Kam. I am named after the anwelarr plant. I am Kam!" Kngwarray's ability to portray Country truthfully is undeniable and perhaps best summed up by those who knew her best. On one wall of the exhibition a quote from Jedda Purvis Kngwarray, Jennifer Purvis Kngwarray and Josie Kunoth Petyarr is printed. 'If you close your eyes and imagine the paintings in your mind's eye, you will see them transform. They are real - what Kngwarray painted is alive and true. The paintings are dynamic and keep on changing, and you can see how realistic they are," it reads. "You might wonder, 'Hey, how come these paintings are changing form?' That powerful Country changes colour, just like the paintings do. The Country transforms itself, and those paintings do as well. That's why the old woman is famous.' Emily Kam Kngwarray is at Tate Modern from 10 July 2025 until 11 January 2026.
CBC
09-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Vancouver Art Gallery cutting staff, programming by about 30%
Social Sharing The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) is making deep cuts to its programming and staffing in an attempt to balance its budget. Eva Respini, VAG interim co-CEO, said overall, the cuts will amount to about 30 per cent. She said before the layoffs, there were 129 employees. Last month, 16 people accepted voluntary departure incentives, and 18 people have received layoffs since then. "We're really looking across the institution, trying to leave no stone unturned, and we really tried to save as many roles, as many jobs as possible," said Respini, adding that there's a union seniority process now taking place that could affect the final number of people who lose their jobs. "This is an incredibly difficult moment," she said. "It's quite literally every department in the museum that has been affected in one way or another." The co-CEO said the gallery will be doing fewer exhibitions in the coming year — from 12 down to eight — and they will last longer. One floor will change to showing art from the VAG's permanent collection, rather than travelling exhibitions. The gallery is planning a big Emily Carr exhibition this year, relying largely on the artist's more than 250 pieces in its collection. "We will be organizing an exhibition from our collection of Indigenous art, specifically from the Pacific Northwest coast. So it's an opportunity to lean into the local, and what I would say is that's what this upcoming year is. It's really about the local stories we can tell," said Respini. Cultural sector under pressure According to Jon Stovell, VAG board of trustees chair, the entire cultural sector across North America and Europe is struggling, as less money comes from philanthropists and governments and the cost of everything continues to increase. Stovell said attendance at the gallery never returned to pre-pandemic levels. Respini said in the fiscal year that just ended, the gallery ran a $22-million budget, but with the cuts, they're looking to meet a balanced budget of $16 million. According to a spokesperson with the B.C. Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport, the provincial government provided $1,987,000 in operating assistance from 2022 to 2025, as well as $1,581,000 in what it calls post-pandemic resilience supplements in 2022 and 2023. "This [supplement] was a temporary funding measure introduced to help arts organizations manage the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. These one-time funds were always intended as short-term support," said the spokesperson. New gallery construction plan proceeding Despite the challenges operating the gallery with the resources it has at its disposal, plans to build a new building for the VAG continue. "It seems a bit dissonant, I understand, in the current climate to be pursuing that, but it's something that I think if we don't pursue, will become a generational lost opportunity," said Stovell, adding that contributions from different levels of government and donors are still in place for the project. In December, the gallery scrapped its design for the proposed building at Cambie and West Georgia streets after costs soared to $600 million. Stovell said the VAG is now in the final stages of selecting a new architect from a pool of 14 Canadian firms. He said the goal is to announce the selection in late fall. According to Respini, the drawn-out project spanning 15 years to build a new gallery may make it more difficult to attract donations from philanthropists to cover operating costs. "There's some truth to a limited pool of donors who, for the last 15 years, have been spoken to — a lot of asks about the shiny new thing, and it's hard to maintain that for 15 years," she said. But Stovell disagrees, saying donors are generally quite specific in terms of whether their contributions will go toward operating or capital costs, and many prefer capital projects. "I think it would be harder to raise operational funding if people didn't see the prospect for the new gallery," he said.
