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The word “No” does not exist in the majority of the over 200 Australian Aboriginal languages. Where it does exist, this powerful word is reserved for the elders and is used with great care and ceremony. As these languages reach the brink of extinction, indigenous Australian artists are using contemporary art to assert their identity and culture and say no to racism, land theft and colonialism in an urban world. |
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““Saying No” was organized through extensive travel between Australia and New York City to increase the visibility of contemporary Aboriginal artists…”
Tony Albert, Beyond Belief, 2011. Acrylic and collage elements on aluminum, 30 x 21cm. Courtesy of the artist and held in a private collection.
Saying No: Reconciling Spirituality and Resistance in Indigenous Australian Art
Bindi Cole
The word “No” does not exist in the majority of the over 200 Australian Aboriginal languages. Where it does exist, this powerful word is reserved for the elders and is used with great care and ceremony. As these languages reach the brink of extinction, indigenous Australian artists are using contemporary art to assert their identity and culture and say no to racism, land theft and colonialism in an urban world.
Aboriginal history in Australia parallels African American history in the United States, with a more recent Civil Rights Movement. Australia’s indigenous population has been subject to state sanctioned land displacement, ethnic cleansing and segregation – impoverishing their quality of life and relegating their culture to the margins of Australian society. Only recently has the government taken steps to apologize for the inhumane systems of oppression inflicted upon Australia’s native peoples. “Saying No” was organized through extensive travel between Australia and New York City to increase the visibility of contemporary Aboriginal artists and to reaffirm artistic practice as a site for civil dissonance for disenfranchised populations around the world.
“Saying No: Reconciling Spirituality and Resistance in Indigenous Australian Art” is curated by Bindi Cole and is on view at Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Art from August 11 – October 30, 2011.
Fiona Foley, HHH, 2004. Ultrachrome on paper, 101 x 76 cm. Courtesy of the artist and Niagara Gallerie.
