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Vie des Arts

Letter from Australia David Garneau

Volume 53, Number 215, Supplement, Summer 2009

URI: https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/61888ac

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Publisher(s) La Société La Vie des Arts

ISSN 0042-5435 (print) 1923-3183 (digital)

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Cite this article Garneau, D. (2009). Letter from Australia. Vie des Arts, 53(215), 14–14.

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LETTER FROM AUSTRALIA By David Garneau

A year ago, I was in Australia () by Brenda Croft, had as a member of a group of just closed. Fortunately, I was Aboriginal curators sent by the able to return to Australia this Daniel Boyd Council to check out the May and catch it at the Treasure Island, 2005 Biennale of . I am no Art Gallery, . This ambi­ world traveller; it was my first tious exhibition mixes 'urban' time off northern North America. artists—including the above Apart from the whole driving on named—with rural, contempo­ the other side of the road thing; rary artists. the Papunya 'dot' , as includes a museum, library, gorgeous architecture; bird of 'Urban' Aboriginal artists contemporary art, rather than as second gallery, and performing paradise flowers growing in tend to differentiate their art 'tribal' art or objects primarily of arts centre. Most facilities are ditches next to palm and banana from the much adored abstrac­ ethnographic interest. Having free and attract huge crowds of trees; office workers carrying tions of their country cousins. spent some time with the best of happy people—including me, their boards on the train for Most, like Richard Bell—a for­ these works, for example, who caught the Nick Cave memo­ some after-work surfing; thou­ mer painter of tourist "art"— Doreen Reid Nakamarra's vibrat­ rabilia exhibition. sands of fruit bats hanging from only use 'Aboriginal' motifs ing pattern paintings, the argu­ Sydney University's art school gum trees in downtown parks as ironically. They rarely make ment seems reasonable, though occupies a sprawling refurbished parrots squawk overhead; Sydney work about the land, spirituality it is strained in most other mental asylum on a hilltop com­ is much like Regina. or anything else stereotypically cases. pound. It is as close to art heaven People are people, and I was associated with Aboriginal peo­ Culture Warriors was com­ as I am likely to see. I counted impressed by how similar ple. Daniel Body and Christopher plimented in Brisbane by a col­ over a hundred painters at the Aboriginal folks are there and Pease take on history ; lections show curated by Bruce University of New South ' here. 'Black fellas' have a com­ Gordon Hookey, Vernon Ah Kee McLean. Breaking Boundaries dynamic College of Fine Arts, all parable history of colonialism, and Gordon Bennett take on displayed that city's long-term sharing a huge floor. The critical reserves/missions, residential language and recent events; and and deep relationship with mass generates some interesting schools, out-of-culture adop­ Richard Bell takes on all comers. Aboriginal artists—a commit­ competition and amazing work. tions; and a recent government Bell's hilarious video, "Uz v.s. ment shown not only in the great The school is getting a huge in­ apology. Contemporary Them," pits the artist against a collection but also the hiring of flux of cash ($48 million) from Aboriginal artists such as Vernon white actor playing a skin-head, an aboriginal curator, McLean. A the Conservative government to Ah Kee, Gordon Bennett, Richard racist boxer. It's all trash talk and similar commitment is seen at build a new art gallery and other Bell, Destiny Deacon and Daniel testosterone. The video ends the Museum of Contemporary Art facility improvements as part of Boyd wresde with these issues in before the fight begins leaving the (Sydney) and The National a recent stimulus package (atten­ remarkable art works that reso­ viewer thinking as much about Gallery in Canberra. This leader­ tion, Stephen Harper). In my nate with Canadian Indigenous masculinity and strategy as about ship does not just represent tour of both painting studios, I experience. racism. Aboriginal art but enables it to was surprised to see a great deal While I met most of these Great efforts are made in this flourish. of abstraction, which seems en­ artists and saw some of their exhibition, and in curatorial The is couraged by the example and works, I missed the big show. strategies in Australia generally, part of an ingenious complex that great commercial success of ru­ Culture Warriors, curated for to promote the work of rural occupies several blocks across ral Aboriginal art. the National Gallery of Australia Indigenous artists, for example the bridge from downtown and

14 VIE DES ARTS N°215