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A celebration of Aboriginal Australians
Storyteller: Larry Brandy, a Wiradjuri man from New South Wales, Australia, enjoys his time telling stories to enthusiastic kids during the exhibition
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Storyteller: Larry Brandy, a Wiradjuri man from New South Wales, Australia, enjoys his time telling stories to enthusiastic kids during the exhibition.
An art exhibition highlights the complexities of the Australian story.
Australia’s status as one of the world’s largest multicultural societies is not widely known. From the outside, Australia is often viewed as a country with a predominantly Caucasian population and yet the land down under has long been inhabited by Aboriginal Australians, differentiated into hundreds of distinct groups, each with its own language and culture.
“Yiwarra Kuju: The Canning Stock Route,” an art exhibition organized by the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, aims to change this misleading assumption.
The exhibition was organized as part of Australia’s National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC) week, initiated to commemorate the history and culture of Aboriginal Australians.
“NAIDOC week is a celebration of the history, culture and achievements of Australian Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders,” said Justin Lee, Australia’s deputy ambassador to Indonesia.
Open to public from July 16 to 24, the exhibition features contemporary Aboriginal paintings that share stories of Australia, past and present.
One particular painting tells the story of someone who’s just seen a helicopter for the first time using a technique that makes use of shapes and lines and circles.
The exhibition also showcases the concept of story-telling; as told through Larry Brandy, a Wiradjuri man from New South Wales.
“We have events in government offices. Government offices are looking for Aboriginal people to share their stories,” Brandy said.
This is aligned with this year’s NAIDOC week theme: “Songlines: The living narrative of our nation.”
Prominent Indonesian storyteller, Rhesa, was also invited by the Australian Embassy in Jakarta to share a reading of Indonesian folk stories.
“Australian Aboriginal culture and Indonesian culture are both strong. Story is indeed a means to pass messages across the generations. I hope we can preserve the method so that later generations learn the value of protecting our beloved countries,” Rhesa said.
The Australian government began to introduce Australian Aboriginal culture to the broader international community following former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s apology to Australian Aboriginal communities in 2008 over the stolen generation, a tragic part of Australia’s colonial history that was carried out between the 1900s and the 1960s.
In the speech, Kevin apologized on behalf of the wider community for the administration (and institutional organizations) having forcibly removed Aboriginal children from their families, taking them against their will to be brought up by white foster families or in institutions.
Through the celebration of NAIDOC week, Australia hopes to embark on a new chapter.
“What matters is that NAIDOC aims to raise people’s awareness of Australian Aboriginal society. We really respect Aboriginal Australians and hope that people here will understand the Australian culture better,” Justin further said.
The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post
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Yiwarra Kuju: The Canning Stock Route
Alun-Alun Indonesia, Grand Indonesia
16-24 July 10a.m – 10p.m
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