SA to host Aboriginal art festival
The State Government has announced an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander visual arts festival, to be supported by a $4 million investment by BHP Billiton.
Premier Jay Weatherill and BHP chief executive Andrew Mackenzie announced the Spring 2015 festival at the Art Gallery of SA this morning.
Weatherill said a major Aboriginal cultural event was one of the initiatives the government had sought from BHP last year when it asked the mining giant to “recommit to South Australia”.
The winner of this year’s Premier’s NAIDOC award, and the first Aboriginal curator appointed to the Art Gallery, Nici Cumpston, has been appointed as the inaugural artistic director for the festival.
You might like
The festival will feature exhibitions, a curated Aboriginal art fair featuring recognised APY lands artists and others, and a national symposium with collectors, exhibitors, academics and arts centres.
“We want to strengthen the future of Aboriginal artwork in high-end arts,” Weatherill said.
“We also have the ambitious goal of making South Australia the international hub for Aboriginal visual art.”
Mackenzie said BHP was pleased to support the event as many of its Australian businesses operate on or near Aboriginal lands.
“We feel it is important for Aboriginal communities to have greater opportunities to develop economically not only through direct employment and contracting with BHP Billiton but also by maintaining and enhancing their cultural activities.”
Want to see more stories from InDaily SA in your Google search results?
- Click here to set InDaily SA as a preferred source.
- Tick the box next to "InDaily SA". That's it.
